Mei Li Perpetrator

Overview

Mei Li is the co-perpetrator in the 2009 Dublin, California attack that killed 91-year-old Selma "Sally" Hill and wounded her grandson Eric Hill, profiled in the Netflix true crime docuseries Worst Ex Ever, Season 1 Episode 3 ("Killing for Custody"). Mei Li, mother of Rosa Hill, struck Eric with a baton during the attack on the Hill home in Dublin, California. Her participation in the assault alongside her daughter makes the case one of the most unusual family-violence scenarios documented in the Worst Ex Ever series.

Background

Mei Li is the mother of Rosa Pui Hill. According to court records from Alameda County and reporting by SFGate, Mei Li was involved in the planning and execution of the January 2009 attack on Eric Hill and his grandmother Selma Hill at the Dublin, California home. The Netflix true crime docuseries Worst Ex Ever examines Mei Li's role in the attack and the family dynamics that led a mother to participate in her daughter's violent scheme during a custody dispute.

The true crime episode explores how Mei Li became an active participant in the attack rather than a restraining influence on her daughter Rosa. Her willingness to use violence — striking Eric Hill with a baton — demonstrated that the conspiracy extended beyond Rosa Hill alone.

Role in the 2009 Attack

On January 8, 2009, Mei Li accompanied her daughter Rosa Hill to the Dublin, California home of Selma Hill. When Eric Hill arrived, Mei Li struck him in the head with a baton — a blow that caused serious injuries but did not kill him. The attack on Eric was coordinated with Rosa's actions: while Mei Li wielded the baton, Rosa threatened Eric with a handgun.

The Netflix docuseries Worst Ex Ever details Mei Li's specific role in the attack through Eric Hill's eyewitness testimony and the evidence presented at trial. The true crime episode examines how Mei Li's participation transformed the attack from a single-perpetrator assault into a coordinated family conspiracy at the Dublin, California residence.

During the attack, 91-year-old Selma Hill was killed. Her body was later found wrapped in a tarp in a trash can outside the Dublin home. The Netflix true crime docuseries Worst Ex Ever presents the killing as the most devastating consequence of the custody dispute between Eric and Rosa Hill.

The Trial

Mei Li was tried alongside her daughter Rosa Hill in Alameda County Superior Court at the Rene C. Davidson Courthouse in Oakland. In June 2011, a jury convicted Mei Li of first-degree murder of Selma Hill and attempted premeditated murder of Eric Hill. The convictions reflected the jury's finding that Mei Li was a knowing and willing participant in the planned attack on the Dublin, California home.

The Netflix true crime docuseries Worst Ex Ever examines the trial proceedings and the evidence that established Mei Li's culpability. The true crime episode uses the trial to explore the legal concept of co-conspiracy and how both mother and daughter were held accountable for the violence in Dublin, California.

The Appeal

In April 2015, a California appellate court reversed the first-degree murder conviction in Mei Li's case. The appellate court found issues with the first-degree murder conviction while leaving the attempted-murder conviction in place. Further proceedings adjusted Mei Li's sentence accordingly. The reversal did not exonerate Mei Li of involvement in the attack — it modified the degree of the murder conviction based on legal standards for premeditation.

The Netflix docuseries Worst Ex Ever addresses the appellate outcome as part of its examination of the Dublin, California case, noting the distinction between the original verdict and the post-appeal legal status.

Relationship with Rosa Hill

Mei Li's relationship with her daughter Rosa Hill is central to understanding the dynamics of the case featured in Worst Ex Ever. The true crime episode examines how a mother came to participate in her daughter's violent scheme — a question that goes to the heart of the family dynamics that drove the January 2009 attack in Dublin, California.

The Netflix true crime docuseries Worst Ex Ever presents the mother-daughter relationship as a factor that enabled the violence, with Mei Li's loyalty to Rosa overriding any moral or legal restraint that might have prevented the attack on Eric and Selma Hill.

Legal status

Mei Li was convicted in 2011 of first-degree murder and attempted premeditated murder. On appeal in 2015, a California appellate court reversed the first-degree murder conviction in Mei Li's case, leaving the attempted-murder conviction in place. Further proceedings adjusted her sentence accordingly. The Netflix docuseries Worst Ex Ever examines the Dublin case as a true crime story about familial violence.

Charges & status

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