Michael Sanft, the defense attorney who represented Duane “Keffe D” Davis in the Tupac Shakur murder trial, has died at 55.
He later served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and attended BYU-Hawaii, where he danced at the Polynesian Cultural Center. Sanft grew up on the island of Tongo and moved to San Diego, California , with his family when he was 12, according to his biography on his law firm’s website .
His role in Tupac case
As per USA Today , Sanft planned to appeal Davis’ conviction for Tupac Shakur’s murder. He was the lead trial attorney at Las Vegas-based SOS Injury Lawyers, where he had handled more than 150 cases. During the sentencing, Judge Carli Kierny told him: “It took us 30 years, but at this time you are going to face justice for what you did on September 7, 1996. Court records show that he filed a notice of appeal on October 30, 2026.
Sanft formed a defense team and took on Davis’ case pro bono, meaning he did not charge a fee, according to Billboard . After the trial, Sanft spoke to FOX5 Las Vegas and said he had no regrets about how he handled the case. “Maybe if I had a psychic sitting next to me to help discern who should be on the jury,” he said.
