Royce Leon Lanham, a 62-year-old man, was found dead on September 12, 2018, in the Harbor Gateway area of Los Angeles, California. His body was discovered wrapped in plastic and wire in the backyard of his residence. The Los Angeles County coroner's records indicated that Lanham died from multiple gunshot wounds. The discovery was made after a neighbor reported seeing a woman dragging a large object wrapped in plastic into the backyard.
Upon investigation, the police identified the body as Lanham's and pronounced him dead at the scene.
The investigation revealed that Lanham's death resulted from an altercation inside his home. His roommate, Kristen King Olson, a 39-year-old woman, was arrested and charged with one count of murder with the allegation of using a handgun. Olson had initially barricaded herself inside the home before surrendering to the police. She was accused of killing Lanham sometime between September 5 and September 12, 2018. The motive behind the altercation and subsequent killing was not immediately clear, but it was noted that Lanham had been attempting to evict Olson due to her erratic behavior.
Olson was charged with murder and faced a possible maximum sentence of 50 years to life in prison. However, in a court hearing, she pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter. This plea resulted in a reduced sentence, and Olson was sentenced to 21 years in state prison. The case highlighted the tragic outcome of a landlord-tenant dispute that escalated into violence, leading to Lanham's untimely death and Olson's lengthy prison sentence. The neighborhood where the incident occurred was described as a residential area with mostly single-family homes, and the crime was not believed to be gang-related.
