Unable to bear the domestic violence, she raised an axe when her husband was sound asleep. Her lover was sleeping beside her husband. Before the crime, she and her lover had communicated via text messages and plotted to kill her husband.
Unable to endure domestic violence for 40-50 minutes on her knees
Her name is Li Yun, born in 1975, originally living in Xietun Town, Wafangdian City. Recently, Li Yun and her lover, Li Lijun, appeared in the court of Dalian Intermediate People's Court as defendants, accused of intentional homicide, with the victim being Li Yun's husband, Zhang Jun.
Li Yun and Zhang Jun have known each other for over a decade. In 1995, they held a wedding ceremony but did not register their marriage. Afterward, they had a son.
"He often beat and scolded me over trivial matters, and he also frequently and unjustifiably beat our son." Li Yun stated that she often suffered from domestic violence and ultimately could no longer endure it, leading her to kill her husband.
Regarding Li Yun's suffering from domestic violence, her neighbors had heard about it. Mr. Zuo, who is Li Yun's neighbor, once witnessed Zhang Jun's violent behavior one night in 2009.
At the time, Mr. Zuo received a distress call from Li Yun. When he arrived at Li Yun's house, Li Yun was leading her son out; her son was even bare-bottomed, while Zhang Jun was chasing them with a weapon, creating a terrifying scene.
"At the time, Zhang Jun had a knife in one hand and an iron rod in the other, forcing his wife and child to kneel down. They knelt for forty to fifty minutes." Eventually, under Mr. Zuo's persuasion, the situation calmed down.
Li Yun mentioned that throughout her years of life with Zhang Jun, she had continuously suffered from domestic violence, but she felt there was nothing she could do about it. "He wouldn't agree to a divorce and even threatened to kill my entire family."
Wanting to kill her husband but hesitating to use rat poison
Over the many years of marriage, Li Yun silently endured the violence from her husband. In May 2009, a man entered Li Yun's life—Li Lijun, who was actually a friend of Zhang Jun and met him while working together.
From the day he met Li Yun, Li Lijun started pursuing her. Li Yun, who frequently suffered from domestic violence and lacked warmth in her family, eventually developed a romantic relationship with Li Lijun.
On November 10, 2009, after being beaten, Li Yun finally could no longer endure the domestic violence. She sent a text message to Li Lijun: "Buy me some rat poison. If he continues to force me, I will kill him."
The next day, Li Lijun brought two bottles of rat poison. Around 7 p.m., after finishing dinner, Li Yun wanted to put the rat poison into the food, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. In the end, she threw the rat poison into a biogas pool in the yard.
On November 13 of the same year, Li Yun suffered domestic violence again, and she called Li Lijun for help. Li Lijun took a taxi to Li Yun's house and tried to persuade Zhang Jun. That night, Li Lijun and Zhang Jun slept in one room, while Li Yun and her son slept in another room.
Thinking about her husband's previous violent actions, Li Yun couldn't fall asleep.
Partnering with her lover, she killed her husband with an axe
Late that night, Li Yun sent a text message to Li Lijun, saying she wanted to kill Zhang Jun. "Is he asleep?" "Which way is his face facing?" Li Yun sent several text messages consecutively, all of which were replied to by Li Lijun.
Around 4 a.m. the next morning, Li Yun quietly entered Zhang Jun's room. Using the light emitted by the phone charger, she identified her husband's sleeping position. Subsequently, Li Yun found an axe and struck Zhang Jun's head multiple times, killing him.
Li Lijun woke up at that moment. He and Li Yun moved dozens of large cabbages and placed them on top of Zhang Jun's body. The next day, Li Yun locked the door and left home, going to work at a noodle shop. Three days later, Li Yun and Li Lijun returned home, used a tricycle to transport the body to Changxing Island, and dumped it under a dirt slope.
On November 22 of the same year, a member of the public discovered the body and reported it to the police. After identifying the deceased, the police located Li Yun, who confessed to killing her husband. Consequently, Li Lijun was also arrested.
After reviewing the case, the court believed that this was a joint crime, with Li Yun being the principal offender and Li Lijun being the accomplice. Considering that the case was triggered by Zhang Jun's frequent domestic violence against Li Yun and her son, Zhang Jun was at fault for the cause of the incident, allowing for a lenient punishment for Li Yun.
On March 14 of this year, Dalian Intermediate People's Court made the first-instance judgment on this case. Li Yun was sentenced to life imprisonment, and Li Lijun was sentenced to thirteen years in prison. (The names of the individuals in the article are pseudonyms.)
Written by Wenjun, Journalist Zhang Xing
(Editor: SN017)