Father’s Loving Message to Son Takes on Haunting Meaning Days Before California Parking Lot Killing

Just 18 days before Jonathan McKinsey was fatally shot in a California parking lot, his father left him a deeply personal message expressing how much his family missed him and urging him to come home for a visit.

McKinsey, a New York Times technology executive, was killed on Sept. 26 in Dublin, California. His in-laws, Shili Chen and Shouyong Zhang, were arrested and booked into Alameda County’s Santa Rita Jail on suspicion of murder.

Witnesses alleged that Chen and Zhang took turns shooting McKinsey in broad daylight. Booking records cited in the report show the pair face multiple charges, including first-degree murder and felony conspiracy.

“Mom and Dad love you so much and miss you”

A 2009 photograph posted to Finney’s Facebook shows McKinsey (center) and the father (right).Facebook/williamfinneyII

The message from McKinsey’s father, William Finney II, was posted on Sept. 8 in response to a new profile photograph his son had shared the previous day.

“Jon, hope everything is going well,” Finney wrote.

He encouraged his son to visit when he had time, adding: “Mom and Dad love you so much and miss you.”

Finney also expressed hope that things would improve between McKinsey and his wife, Candice Jang, and their three children.

Less than three weeks later, McKinsey was dead.

Bitter divorce had exposed deep family tensions

Finney was responding to a new profile picture McKinsey posted on Sept. 7. McKinsey was formerly Dawn Finney before he transitioned from female to male in 2010. He married Jang in 2011.Facebook/@william.finneyii

At the time of the killing, McKinsey and Jang were going through a contentious divorce and custody dispute. Both had filed restraining orders containing serious allegations against the other.

Court documents also revealed longstanding tension between McKinsey and his in-laws.

In his restraining-order filing, McKinsey alleged that Chen verbally attacked him during a 2023 visit after he defended one of his children’s decision to wear a dress.

McKinsey claimed Chen used anti-LGBTQ slurs against him and blamed him for the child’s choice. He also alleged that he wanted outside childcare arranged so Chen would no longer care for the children, but said Jang refused.

McKinsey, who transitioned from female to male in 2010 and married Jang the following year, also alleged a previous physical confrontation with Zhang. He claimed Zhang punched him in the chest after McKinsey underwent a double mastectomy in 2010.

Both spouses had made serious allegations

Witnesses say Chen and Zhang took turns shooting McKinsey on the afternoon of Sept. 26 in broad daylight.

The marital dispute included accusations from both McKinsey and Jang.

McKinsey had previously been charged with two misdemeanor counts of child abuse over allegations involving one of his children. He was later released from jail on the condition that he complete parenting classes.

In an August custody filing, Jang alleged that McKinsey had a volatile temper and claimed she and the children had learned to avoid provoking him.

Jang had also filed a restraining order the previous year alleging McKinsey threatened to kill her and her parents.

McKinsey, meanwhile, made allegations of abuse against Jang in his own court filing. He claimed that during their relationship she had encouraged him to take his own life and made derogatory comments about him being transgender.

Those accusations were part of competing court filings and should not be treated as independently established facts.

In-laws arrested after fatal shooting

Dublin police arrested and booked the pair into Alameda County’s Santa Rita Jail on suspicion of murder.

The family conflict took a devastating turn on the afternoon of Sept. 26.

According to the report, witnesses told authorities that Chen and Zhang allegedly took turns shooting McKinsey in a parking lot in Dublin.

Police subsequently arrested both in-laws. In addition to murder and conspiracy allegations, booking records cited in the report list charges related to dangerously discharging a firearm and child endangerment that could have resulted in serious injury or death.

As the criminal case moves forward, the message McKinsey’s father left only 18 days earlier now carries a painful significance.

At the time, it was simply a parent telling his son that he was loved, missed and welcome home. Neither could have known how little time remained.