![]() According to local law enforcement, Chou left notes in his car opposing Taiwanese independence. He pleaded not guilty to the state charges and has yet to make a court appearance in the federal case.Ĭhou was born in Taiwan and was from a family with recent roots in China, which considers the island democracy part of its territory. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)ĭavid Wenwei Chou, 69, has been charged in both state and federal court with murder, attempted murder and hate crimes, with prosecutors alleging that he targeted the church because of the congregants' Taiwanese national origin. ![]() Parishioner Jerry Chen, right, helps visually impaired shooting survivor Li-Yen Hong to the lectern during the one-year commemoration. “I don’t think anyone’s scared,” said Tony Chen, a 76-year-old church elder. On Sunday, some said their belief in God had been shaken, but many said that grappling with the tragedy has renewed their faith. The gunman, according to prosecutors, hated them for that. One parishioner wore a yellow hat that read “Yes! Taiwan.” The choir sang “Hometown at Dusk,” a Taiwanese song from the 1950s popular with those living overseas and those supporting an open declaration of the island’s independence. Lee and most of the hundreds of others at Sunday's commemoration spoke in the Taiwanese dialect, as they typically do during church services. … The bad guy pretended to be one of us,” said Lee, 77, who on Sunday attended a gathering at the church to mark the one-year anniversary of the shooting. “We didn’t prevent the stranger from coming. Lee can't shake the guilt that she should have done more. Shooting survivor Feng Feng Lee speaks at the one-year anniversary of the attack at Irvine Taiwanese Presbyterian Church in Laguna Woods.
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