Three men accused of killing an elderly woman tourist during a robbery outside an upscale shopping mall in Newport Beach, CA, finally made an appearance in court Wednesday to face murder and other charges.

Leroy McCrary, 26 and Malachi Darnell, 18, both of LA, plus Jaden Cunningham, 18, of Lancaster, CA showed up in person at Orange County Superior Court after twice refusing to leave their jail cells to appear at scheduled arraignments last Monday and Friday.

At a hearing Wednesday in a Santa Ana courtroom, Judge Andre Manssourian, continued their arraignment till August 1 after being told defense lawyers that they were ‘not ready to proceed’ yet.

The defense attorneys also objected to media photos of the defendants being taken in court.

‘It would be impossible to find a jury in this county that would be fair and unbiased in light of the widespread publicity about this case,’ Cunningham’s lawyer, Ray Chen told the Judge.

Chen also protested about photos of the three defendants ‘shirtless’ in their jail cells, published this week, calling the pictures ‘prejudicial.’

Darnell’s attorney, Kate Corrigan, objected to ‘my client’s face being pictured’ because there ‘could be an identity issue here.’

Judge Manssourian denied the defense request to ban cameras from the courtroom. 'Media take photos routinely at our arraignments,’ he said

And as for the shirtless photos, the judge gestured toward the three defendants - Wednesday all wearing orange prison overalls and waving to family members in the courtroom from behind a glass panel and metal grill, - saying, ‘This is an opportunity to be depicted in the proper Orange County jail clothes.’

The men are all charged with murdering New Zealand tourist Patricia McKay, 68, by running her over with a car and dragging her 65 feet after trying to rob her and her husband Douglas outside a Barnes and Noble store at Fashion Island mall.

The three - who could face the death penalty if convicted - are also accused of attempted second degree robbery.

In addition, Darnell is charged with attempted murder and discharging a firearm after allegedly firing a gun at a Good Samaritan who was trying to help the McKays during the incident July 2.

And McCrary - who was free on probation during the botched robbery even though he was convicted last year of stealing a Rolex watch at gunpoint - was also charged with evading police while driving recklessly during a 30 mile plus high-speed car chase.

Police say that Darnell and Cunningham, both wearing masks, jumped out of a white Toyota Camry driven by McCrary and accosted the McKays as they were walking outside the Barnes & Noble store.

One of the suspects allegedly put a gun to the head of Mr. McKay, 69, demanding his watch and forcing him to the ground.

When they couldn’t get the watch, say cops, the robbers turned on Mrs. McKay, who was holding several shopping bags.

As Mrs. Mckay fought to hang on to the bags, Cunningham allegedly dragged her into the street in front of the white Toyota getaway car with McCrary at the wheel.

Prosecutors say Douglas McKay jumped in front of the vehicle to protect his wife, but McCrary, with Darnell back in the car, accelerated and forced the husband out of the way, then ran over Mrs. McKay, trapping her under the vehicle and dragging her 65 feet to her death.

Cunningham was still running toward the moving escape vehicle, trying to jump in and a Good Samaritan was chasing him, trying to stop him.

But, according to cops, the pursuer gave up the chase when Darnell fired three shots toward him from the Toyota and Cunningham got away with his two accomplices. Nobody was hit by gunfire.

The men fled north toward LA with the Toyota reaching speeds of up to 110mph, say police, who eventually were able to pull the car over and arrest all three.

The victim’s husband Douglas McKay - a prominent businessman and community leader in New Zealand’s capital, Auckland - was not injured in the incident.

Meanwhile Los Angeles County Sheriff George Gascon - and CA Democrat Governor Gavin Newsom - are facing a growing storm of anger over why one of the accused men, McCrary, was free on probation instead of behind bars for a string of earlier LA convictions, including one last year for a similar robbery.

Prosecutors say that before last week’s robbery and killing, McCrary had prior convictions for residential burglary in 2018, criminal threats in 2020, and stealing a Rolex at gunpoint in Santa Monica in 2023.

He pleaded no congest last year to the robbery charge plus another of being a drug addict in possession of a firearm. Yet he was only sentenced to two years probation and a three-year prison sentence was suspended, leaving him free on the streets.

‘Our shopping centers and malls have become hunting grounds for criminals who are stalking innocent shoppers to rob them blind because our Governor and our Legislature refuse to hold anyone accountable for their actions,’ blasted Republican Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer when he announced the charges against the three men.

He said that Mrs. McKay’s murder was a crime ‘that should have never happened,’ adding, ‘Lawlessness and violence will not be tolerated in our society.’

Newport Beach Mayor Will O'Neill reacted with anger to the horrendous slaying of Mrs McKay, saying that McCrary 'shouldn't have been in free society' because of his past crimes.

‘Frankly, to hell with these guys… These are thugs. Every community is now dealing with this. We have to do better as a society. We cannot tolerate this.'

And Gascon’s opponent in the November election for LA DA, said Gascon’s ‘malpractice appears to have cost another life.’

Asked to explain why McCrary didn’t get jail time for his previous crimes, Gascon said in a statement that ‘the case against him had significant problems with proof’ so ‘the management team at the court authorized a plea offer that allowed him to be placed on probation,’ plus a prison sentence that was suspended.

Newport Beach Mayor Will O’Neill was in court Wednesday and after the hearing he threw another jab at LA County DA George Gascon over one of the defendants, Leroy McCrary, being allowed free on probation instead of being jailed after being convicted of a similar robbery last year. 

‘He had several prior felonies,’ said O’Neill. ‘I do not understand the LA system’ …. where criminals spend so little time in jail.’ 

He said that looking at the three accused young men in court Wednesday, he ‘felt a mixture of anger and sadness that these three made such really awful choices.’

O’Neill said he was at court Wednesday representing the family of fatal victim Patricia McKay and the City of Newport Beach, which he dubbed ‘one of the safest communities in the world.’ 

Calling the slaying of Mrs. McKay ‘horrendous and horrific,’ he said that her heart-broken husband, Douglas McKay, has now returned to New Zealand with family members. He noted that the McKays had been married almost 50 years and added, ’Now they’re not going to make it to their 50th anniversary.'