Lawyer who represented defendant in Tupac Shakur murder case found dead

LAS VEGAS (KVVU/Gray News) — The defense attorney who represented Duane “Keffe D” Davis in the Tupac Shakur murder trial has died.

Michael Sanft was reported dead Thursday night in Las Vegas. The Clark County coroner’s office confirmed the 55-year-old’s death.

The cause and manner of death remain pending. Details surrounding his death were limited, with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department referring all inquiries to the coroner’s office.

Sanft was the lead trial attorney at SOS Injury Lawyers, where he tried more than 150 cases to jury verdict and argued before the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

According to his website, he moved to San Diego at 12 and later attended BYU-Hawaii.

Sanft represented Davis pro bono during his Las Vegas trial. A jury later found Davis guilty in August.

In an interview with FOX5, Sanft said he would not have done anything differently.

“We had the best team possible in this case, from the motion practice work on this appeal to our investigator to our firm here at SOS Injury. We all did our part. I don’t see what I could’ve done differently,” Sanft said.

After the verdict, Sanft also mentioned sitting down with Davis.

“We were just sitting there taking in the moment,” Sanft said. “He had reminded me this is phase one. Because I was upset with the verdict, I was very disappointed in the jury. Mr. Davis was the one who said, ‘Don’t worry about it, man, this is the first phase,’ and I said, ‘I understand; I hate to lose.’”

Attorney Mike Troiano said Sanft was an honest, humble and good human being.

“I’m in total shock by this news, as is the legal community as a whole. An extremely talented trial lawyer who jurors and his peers loved,” Troiano continued.

Davis’ defense team stated they had planned to appeal the conviction. A notice of the appeal was filed Oct. 30.