Michael Sanft Found Dead at 55 Following Client’s Tupac Shakur Murder Conviction
Michael Sanft, the Las Vegas defense attorney who represented Duane “Keffe D” Davis in the Tupac Shakur murder trial, was found dead inside his home on Friday morning, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He was 55 years old.
Only a few weeks have passed since Sanft experienced the sentencing of his client to 40 years to life behind bars for planning the 1996 drive-by shooting that claimed Shakur. The case had stood for nearly three decades as one of America’s most notorious cold cases until Davis was arrested in 2023.
A Lifelong Friend Remembers the Defense Attorney
Michael Sloan, a close friend who rode motorcycles with Sanft, confirmed the attorney’s passing and remembered him as a devoted friend. He was one of my best friends and one of the best human beings I knew,
Sloan shared, as reported by Fox News.
Authorities have not yet determined the cause and manner of Sanft’s death. Police told the Las Vegas outlet the death did not appear suspicious. Inquiries seeking statements were submitted by Fox News Digital to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and the Clark County Coroner’s Office.
The Trial and Conviction of Duane “Keffe D” Davis
Sanft’s passing follows a courtroom battle that concluded in August when a Nevada jury found Davis guilty of first-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon. Prosecutors argued during the trial that Davis orchestrated the September 7, 1996, shooting to avenge a physical altercation involving his nephew and Shakur inside the MGM Grand casino on the Las Vegas Strip.
At the time of the shooting, Shakur was riding in a BMW driven by Death Row Records co-founder Marion “Suge” Knight. While Knight survived the attack with minor injuries, Shakur died six days later at the age of 25. The killing silenced one of rap’s most commercially successful and influential artists and fueled the era’s infamous East Coast-West Coast “gangsta” rap feud.
During the court hearings, Sanft challenged the state’s arguments by pointing out to the panel that no physical proof existed outside of Davis’ own declarations to place his client inside the Cadillac or present in Las Vegas. Despite the defense’s arguments, the jury deliberated for about three hours before returning a guilty verdict. Davis was subsequently sentenced on October 13 to serve 40 years to life behind bars, and had recently filed an appeal challenging his client’s conviction.
