Chunli Zhao, the man accused of the deadliest mass shooting in San Mateo County history, is set to stand trial in January, KRON4 reported this week.
The trial date is Jan. 25, 2027, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney's Office, CBS San Francisco and Patch reported. If the date holds, the trial will begin more than four years after the shooting.
The case
Zhao is charged with seven counts of murder and one count of attempted murder. Prosecutors say he shot eight people at two mushroom farms in Half Moon Bay on Jan. 23, 2023. He is accused of killing four people and wounding a fifth at California Terra Garden, where he lived and worked, then killing three more at Concord Farms, where he had worked before. He was arrested after parking outside the sheriff's substation, Patch reported. Authorities described the shootings at the time as an apparent case of workplace violence.
A death penalty case
This is the first death penalty case in San Mateo County in over a decade, and the first time District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe has sought the death penalty since taking office in 2011, according to Patch.
Prosecutors had asked for a trial in September, but the defense said it would not be ready until 2027. The judge called January a firm date and told defense attorneys they must be ready, prosecutors said, according to CBS San Francisco.