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Latest Legal News from the Criminal Courts of Los Angeles, California and the U.S.
February 28, 2008
Transient Pleads Guilty to Slayings of Former Screenwriter, Physician
LOS ANGELES – A 31-year-old transient pleaded guilty today to the 2004 slayings of a former screenwriter and his next door neighbor.
Deputy District Attorney Ricardo Ocampo and Deputy District Attorney Alan Jackson of Major Crimes Division co-prosecuted the case. Ocampo said Keven Lee Graff pleaded guilty to all counts and special allegations, including two counts of murder, two counts of sexual penetration by a foreign object, two counts of torture, two counts of aggravated mayhem and two counts of first-degree burglary.
As part of a plea negotiation, the defendant pleaded guilty to 10 counts. A count of carjacking – part of the original 11 charges against him – was dismissed. Graff faces life in prison without the possibility of parole – a sentence he must serve consecutive to another term of life without the possibility of parole.
In June 2004, Graff broke into the Hollywood home of Robert Lees, a 91-year-old former screenwriter. Prosecutors allege that after torturing Lees, the defendant eviscerated and beheaded the victim. The next day, Graff broke into the home of Lees’ next door neighbor, semi-retired physician Morley Engleson, 69. The defendant tortured and murdered Engleson before fleeing. Police found Lees’ severed head at the home of the second victim.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Johnson ordered Graff to appear for sentencing on April 4 in Department 108. Family members are expected to make victim impact statements prior to sentencing, prosecutors said.
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