Man charged with murder in stabbing death of actor James Handy in Tarzana
LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A 44-year-old Tarzana man has been charged with murdering his mother's boyfriend, veteran actor James Handy, prosecutors announced Friday.
Handy, 81, who appeared in films such as "Jumanji," "Top Gun: Maverick," "Logan" and "Arachnophobia," was found Wednesday morning in the front yard of a Tarzana home, unconscious and suffering from a stab wound to his chest, police said.
LAFD paramedics transported Handy to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The suspect was identified as Michael Gledhill, Los Angeles police said. Gledhill is charged with one count of murder with a special allegation that he personally used a deadly weapon, a knife, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.
Authorities say Gledhill was arrested after telling police he was the person they were looking for. Police had responded to the home after a 911 caller stated: "I am the son of man, I just killed the man of sin," according to the Los Angels Police Department.
Gledhill did not appear at an arraignment Friday afternoon in Los Angeles Superior Court and no plea was entered for him. Superior Court Judge John H. Reid ordered that he be sent to mental health court and to undergo psychological evaluations. Another judge will then decide whether he is competent for trial. Gledhill is being held on $2 million bail.
Handy had more than 100 acting credits for roles in TV series and movies in a career that spanned several decades, according to his IMDB page.
"This is not how anyone's life should end, stabbed in the chest and left dying in the front yard of a home," L.A. County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said. "The victim, James Handy, deserved to live out his later years enjoying what he had worked so hard for and enjoying it with those he loved and cared about."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
