LOS ANGELES (AP) — A woman has pleaded guilty to killing Michael Latt, a high-profile entertainment industry consultant and social justice advocate.
Jameelah Elena Michl, 36, admitted to committing first-degree murder and first-degree burglary in a Los Angeles court on Monday, court records showed. Michl also admitted to using a firearm during the attack, which is a felony offense.
She faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, with no parole considered for 25 years, at her sentencing scheduled for July 10, prosecutors said.
Latt was mourned across Hollywood after the November 2023 killing. He was a consultant whose firm focused on social impact in film and entertainment, and had worked with “Selma” director Ava DuVernay and “Black Panther” director Ryan Coogler, among many others.
When Latt’s mother Michelle Satter, a founding director of the Sundance Institute, was given an honorary Oscar for her humanitarian work just weeks after the killing, Coogler described her son as Satter’s “greatest gift to the world.” Satter told the audience she wanted to share the award with Latt, who always “led with love.”
Prosecutors alleged that Michl knocked on the door of Latt’s Los Angeles home, then forced her way in and fatally shot him with a semi-automatic handgun. He was later declared dead at a hospital.
Michl had been stalking and threatening director A.V. Rockwell, and targeted Latt because he was friends with Rockwell, who had taken out several restraining orders against her, according to court records and police.
Rockwell’s latest film “ A Thousand and One,” starring Teyana Taylor, earned her a Gotham Award for breakthrough director on the same night Latt was killed.
An email seeking comment from an attorney for Michl was not immediately returned.