On January 12, local time, Samuel Haskell, the "Hollywood rich second generation" who was suspected of killing his Chinese wife May Lee Haskell and her parents, appeared in court again and refused to plead guilty to all charges. Previously, Haskell, 35, was facing three counts of murder and special circumstances murder for allegedly killing his 37-year-old wife May and her parents, dismembering the bodies and then abandoning them.
Suspected of killing his wife and parents-in-law, dismembering and dumping the bodies, no bail
Haskell, 35, is accused of killing his 37-year-old wife Mei and her parents, dismembering the bodies and dumping them.
According to previous reports, on the evening of November 7, 2023 local time, a construction worker called 911 to call the police, saying that they saw a body wrapped in a black bag near Haskell's home. But when police arrived, the bag was gone. Early the next morning, a homeless man stumbled upon "a dismembered torso" in a trash can 3.5 miles from Haskell's home.
Investigators said they immediately identified Haskell by tracing the source of the trash bags. Police reportedly found blood and other evidence, including "what appeared to be human remains," inside Haskell's home. Police determined that the body was likely that of Haskell's missing wife, May.
On November 8, 2023, Haskell was arrested on suspicion of one count of murder and was later charged with the murder of May and her parents.
On December 19, 2023, the Los Angeles County Forensic Examination confirmed that the headless torso previously found in the trash bin belonged to 37-year-old May Haskell. The latest report on January 12, 2024 stated that despite an extensive search, the bodies of Mei's parents Li Gaoshan (transliteration) and Wang Yanxiang (transliteration) have not been found. However, prosecutors and police investigators said there was "no doubt that they had died and suffered a similar fate." The county district attorney's office said police searched Haskell's home and found blood and "other traces related to the deaths." Evidence consistent with dismemberment."
According to reports, Haskell faces three counts of murder and special circumstances to commit murder. Under the law, special circumstances murder involves certain aggravating factors that escalate the seriousness of the murder offense and result in a more severe punishment for the defendant. According to California law, the penalty for first-degree murder is 25 years to life in prison without special circumstances. However, if special circumstances exist, the defendant may be sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, or even the death penalty.
However, since California Governor Newsom announced a moratorium on executions in 2019, this means that if convicted, Haskell will face a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole.
On January 12, 2024, the Los Angeles Superior Court conducted a plea hearing in this case, and Haskell refused to plead guilty.
As he had appeared in court a month earlier, Haskell was naked from the waist down, wearing a suicide smock around his waist and his wrists chained in front of his waist. His attorney, Joe Vermots, said authorities believed Haskell was at risk of self-harm and was forced to appear naked in court, slamming it as "wild speculation."
After the hearing, Haskell was remanded to the Men's Central Jail in downtown Los Angeles without bail. It is reported that the case is scheduled to hold a preliminary hearing on February 16.
A Chinese friend of the victim revealed that the woman wanted a divorce in 2019.
At present, the authorities have not revealed the possible motive for Haskell's murder. According to court records, he was arrested in 2008 and charged with two counts of assault with a deadly weapon and was subsequently sentenced to three years of probation.
According to previous reports, Mei traveled from China to California State University, Northridge, in 2007 to study accounting. While studying abroad, she met Haskell, who was at the same school. In 2010, after the birth of their first child, Mei's parents also moved to the United States to live together and help take care of the child while Mei worked.
Wang Yanqing, the only relative of Mei’s family in the United States and Mei’s uncle, said that he had never heard of any quarrel between Mei and her husband, but his sister Wang Yanxiang once complained to him that he bought a 6-bedroom house (worth more than 2 million U.S. dollars) three years ago. The money was paid by Mei alone, and the monthly mortgage of more than $7,000 was also paid by Mei. Haskell did not provide any financial support.
May’s friends revealed in recent interviews that she had lived in fear for years because of family ties. Her old friend Jenny said that May had wanted to divorce Haskell at least four years ago. But she hesitated because she was worried that Haskell had a "rich and powerful agent father" and might not be able to get custody of her three sons.
Haskell's father is Emmy Award winner and famous Hollywood agent Sam Haskell, who has worked with Kathie Lee Gifford, Whoopi Goldberg, Dolly Parton, George Clooney, etc. Agent for many Hollywood stars.
"Mei first proposed the idea of divorce in 2019." Jenny said, "I told her she could, but she felt she couldn't risk losing her son."
She said that Mei felt trapped . Because of her three children, she did not dare to end the marriage, fearing that her husband would take the children away with the help of his rich and powerful father.
"Maybe she brought it up again and he got mad," Jenny said. She said that Haskell had been violent towards May. "She told me that he hurt her. He hit her."
Jenny also claimed that May once told her that her husband and her parents did not get along well. "She said he was rude to them and ignored them." Another friend also said: "They made him very angry. They didn't speak English, but he made no effort to communicate with them."
(Yangcheng Evening News·Yangcheng Pie Comprehensive Red Star News)
