Michael Sanft, the defence lawyer who represented convicted Tupac Shakur killer Duane “Keffe D” Davis, has been found dead at his home in Las Vegas, Nevada, days after filing an appeal against his client’s conviction.
Sanft, 55, was found dead at his residence, but the Clark County Coroner’s Office has yet to disclose the cause of death.
“Michael Sanft was one of the premier defence attorneys in Las Vegas, and Las Vegas lost a good lawyer and more importantly to me, I lost a friend,” DiGiacomo said.
However, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that police do not consider the death suspicious.
His death comes weeks after Davis was sentenced to 40 years in prison for his role in the 1996 murder of rapper Tupac Shakur.
Sanft represented Davis during the trial, challenging the prosecution’s evidence and questioning its reliance on recordings allegedly containing admissions by his client.
Speaking during the proceedings, Sanft argued that the prosecution had a weak case if it depended heavily on such recordings.
“Here’s the thing at the end of the day, when the state of Nevada has to rely on that kind of information to prove their case beyond reasonable doubt, they’ve got a huge problem,” he said.
Despite defending Davis, Sanft also criticised his client for writing a book and granting interviews in which he discussed Tupac’s murder.
“Do I agree with him writing the book and doing all these interviews? No,” he said.
“Keefe knows that I’m in his corner.
“I have a personal pride issue here because I want to win this case too and I want to do the best job for Keefe that I can.”
Following the guilty verdict, prosecutors praised Sanft’s professionalism despite being on opposite sides of the courtroom.
Prosecutor Marc DiGiacomo described him as one of the leading defence lawyers in Las Vegas.
Davis was convicted in September 2026 over Tupac’s murder and sentenced to 40 years in prison in October.
Prosecutors argued that although Davis did not fire the fatal shots, he orchestrated the attack that killed the rapper in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas in September 1996.
Davis has indicated his intention to appeal the conviction. Following Sanft’s death, he will need another lawyer to handle the appeal.
