The attorney for a man charged with the violent murder of a California Institute of the Arts student in her Newhall apartment last year is now asking the judge for a court date after Jan. 7, 2027, according to court records.
Jack Minh Terry, now 24, of Garden Grove, has been in custody since his Feb. 16, 2025, arrest on suspicion that he killed Emily King, whose given name was Menghan Zhuang, a 23-year-old Chinese national who was months away from graduation.
The request for more time comes from Daniel Perlman, Terry’s defense attorney, who said that he hasn’t been able to access the required medical evaluations and specialty forensic work necessary for his client’s defense
In an unsuccessful attempt at bail in December, Terry’s attorney, through statements from the defendant, described “deplorable and inhumane conditions” that have made the preparation extremely difficult.
But this time around, the delays are more a matter of Perlman not being able to get ahold of the necessary expertise in a timely fashion.
“Counsel understands that no other forensic pathologist is available through the court’s panel. The defense has therefore sought assistance from nonpanel pathologists and is awaiting cost estimates to submit to the court in support of a request for appointment. The pathology review bears directly on the physical evidence, the nature and mechanics of the fatal encounter, and the circumstances surrounding the charged homicide,” according to a motion filed Thursday by Perlman.
“These matters affect the defense’s ability to evaluate the evidence, prepare for trial and assess any supported basis for a negotiated resolution,” he added, referring to a possible plea deal. There has been no discussion of any such terms in open court, according to the minutes from his hearings at the San Fernando Courthouse.
The two sides had agreed in August to start the 10-day clock on trial proceedings next month, but Perlman wrote he had expressed doubt then about whether he would be able to be ready by then.
Perlman also said forensic evidence is likely to play an important role in the defense.
Detectives said they believe the murderer entered King’s apartment with her the day before she was killed and then was seen leaving her bedroom window on the second floor hours before her body was found.
King’s roommate came home and found King wrapped in blankets and towels with the shower running in the Nandina Lane apartment they shared. She was declared deceased shortly after first responders arrived.
Detectives released a screenshot of a man they said was Terry leaving the apartment shortly after the murder and a reward was offered for information leading to his capture. The reward was never claimed, according to a Homicide Bureau official.
An ex-girlfriend of Terry’s testified that she remembered seeing the photo with her mom and having a conversation with her about how Terry had that shirt. Her emotional testimony described violent intimate physical encounters the two had, which she was not a willing party to.
Evidence presented during Terry’s preliminary hearing last year indicated he met King through a dating app not long before her death.
At a December bail-review hearing, Perlman called his client “a gentle soul with no prior violence,” as he had no criminal record before the murder allegation. Perlman also said Terry was an engineering graduate from UC Riverside and an Eagle Scout.
Bail was denied.
The court is now expected to consider Perlman’s request on Oct. 6.
