NYT Trans Executive Hired Hit Man To Kill Mother-in-Law, His Alleged Killer's Attorney Says

New twist in the case of the slain New York Times trans executive ... his in-laws shot him to death in self-defense before his hired hitman could whack them ... at least according to their defense attorney.

Defense lawyer Curtis Briggs told reporters that his clients, Shili Chen and Shouyong Zhang, both 77, purchased firearms in March 2026 because they feared for their lives after learning that Jonathan McKinsey had once hired a hitman to kill Chen, his mother-in-law. Zhang, McKinsey's father-in-law, was apparently not the primary target.

Briggs said Chen and Zhang did not plot to murder McKinsey at the Dublin Sports Grounds park in Dublin, California, on September 26 ... and went to the park for a court-ordered visit with his kids.

Prosecutors claim the couple gunned down McKinsey at the park that day and charged the couple with first-degree murder.

Briggs said the couple was terrified of McKinsey, who allegedly had a violent criminal record and threatened Chen multiple times before hiring the contract killer.

Briggs also said witnesses observed on at least three occasions McKinsey threatening Chen's life. At one point, McKinsey said he was going to "get rid of" Chen, Briggs added.

The new defense strategy comes after Chen and Zhang pleaded not guilty to murder charges at their arraignment Monday inside an Alameda County courtroom.

Following the arraignment, Briggs held a press conference outside the courthouse, telling journalists that McKinsey brought it all on himself by acting "extremely hostile" and "violent" to Chen, who was essentially his live-in nanny.