Uncle found sane at the time he killed his 2 nephews in their Arcadia home
One day following a jury's guilty verdict, a judge ruled Thursday that Deyun Shi was sane at the time he bludgeoned his two teenage nephews in their Arcadia home eight years ago.
Shi, 52, was found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder for the Jan. 22, 2016 killings of 15-year-old Anthony Lin, and 16-year-old William Lin.
Anthony was asleep when he was attacked with bolt cutters. William was killed while studying in a separate room.
The jury also convicted Shi of one count of corporal injury for an attack with a wood-splitting ax on his then-wife in La Cañada Flintridge the night before the killings.
Shi became enraged after learning that his wife obtained a restraining order against him and began divorce proceedings, detectives said earlier.
During Thursday's sanity phase of Shi's trial, Superior Court Judge Jared Moses made the ruling at the prosecution's request after the testimony of a psychologist called on behalf of the defendant.
Shi's legal team objected to the prosecution's request, asking that the jury be allowed to decide whether Shi was sane or insane at the time of the crimes.
The parents of the teenage boys went to visit Shi's wife in the hospital and didn't find their sons' bodies until the day after the attack.
Shi boarded a plane to China hours after the boys were killed, but was taken into custody by Hong Kong authorities shortly after his plane landed. He was extradited to Los Angeles a few months later to face trial on the multiple charges.
One of Shi's attorneys, Vicki Podberesky, argued that her client was suffering from delusions and did not premeditate or deliberate the attack.
The defense lawyer said Shi had a history of mental issues documented in hospital records from China dating back to when he was 15 years old.
Deputy District Attorney MacKenzie Teymouri told jurors in her closing argument that Shi planned the teens' bludgeoning deaths in an "act of revenge" against the family of his estranged wife, who had filed for divorce.
The deputy district attorney said "every act along the way" suggests that Shi was "in his right mind" and "knows what he's doing is wrong."
