The Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office will no longer seek the death penalty in the triple-murder case against Pierre Haobsh, Public Defender Christine Voss said Thursday.
Haobsh, 31, of Oceanside, is accused of murdering Santa Barbara doctor Weidong “Henry” Han, 57, his wife, Huijie “Jennie” Yu, 29, and their 5-year-old daughter, Emily, inside their home in 2016.
On Thursday afternoon, attorneys for both sides met in person before Santa Barbara County Superior Court Judge Brian Hill to formalize a bench trial in the criminal case against Haobsh, as well as an agreement that the prosecution will withdraw the intent to seek the death penalty.
The defense attorneys and prosecutors talked last month about formalizing the agreement to waive the right to a jury trial, which means Haobsh will have a trial before a Santa Barbara County Superior Court judge rather than a jury trial.
Hill reviewed a five-page document, titled, “Stipulation For Court Trial and Waiver of Jury Trial,” during the hearing.
“Part of the agreement (to waive jury trial) is the district attorney is going to withdraw the intention to seek death, which is currently part of the court file,” said Voss, who is representing Haobsh in the case. Public Defender Michael Hanley is also representing Haobsh in the case.
Haobsh has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder and special allegations that the offenses were willful, premeditated and deliberate; committed by means of lying in wait; and committed for financial gain.
He has pleaded not guilty in the case.
In September 2017, District Attorney Joyce Dudley announced the office would pursue the death penalty in the case against Haobsh.
At Thursday’s hearing, Haobsh appeared in court wearing an orange jail uniform top and blue pants, as well as black glasses. He remains in custody at the Santa Barbara County Jail, where he is being held without bail.
Everyone wore masks indoors during the hearing, due to COVID-19 pandemic regulations.
According to attorneys and court staff, the court trial is expected to start Oct. 25 and last about four weeks.
“We hope to have the trial concluded on or before Nov. 15,” said Deputy District Attorney Benjamin Ladinig, who is prosecuting the case along with Hilary Dozer.
Attorneys for both sides will have the ability to call witnesses via the videoconferencing platform Zoom.
“That oftentimes can alleviate any calendar problems, travel concerns and whatnot,” Ladinig told Hill.
Santa Barbara County Superior Court operations have occurred in person and on Zoom during the pandemic.
This case has been in court for more than five years.
On March 23, 2016, Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department responded to the home of Santa Barbara physician Weidong “Henry” Han after friends of Han reportedly were concerned when he missed a meeting.
Deputies were dispatched to their home near Goleta and they discovered the bodies of Han, Yu, and their daughter in the home’s garage, according to testimony from a preliminary hearing in 2017.
All three died of gunshots to the head, the Coroner’s Bureau said.
In June 2017, detectives testified that Han and Haobsh had a business relationship.
Han was the founder of the Santa Barbara Herb Clinic on State Street.
— Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at bholland@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
