{"id":1937,"date":"2026-06-12T17:37:18","date_gmt":"2026-06-12T17:37:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=1937"},"modified":"2026-06-12T17:37:18","modified_gmt":"2026-06-12T17:37:18","slug":"la-county-medical-examiner-details-cause-of-death-for-slain-actor-james-handy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=1937","title":{"rendered":"LA County medical examiner details cause of death for slain actor James Handy"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<p>\u201cTop Gun: Maverick\u201d and \u201cJumanji\u201d actor James Handy\u2019s grisly cause of death has been confirmed after he was fatally stabbed by his girlfriend\u2019s son last week.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=1935\">Motorist hits, kills pedestrian in San Jose residential neighborhood<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The New York native, 81, was attacked June 3 at the Los Angeles home of his girlfriend Wendy Gledhill and her 44-year-old son Michael. Handy was ultimately pronounced dead at a nearby hospital, and Michael was charged with the murder.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RELATED:\u00a0For some, veteran actor\u2019s killing may be a painful reminder of Rob Reiner\u2019s death<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Handy \u2014 who had nearly 150 screen credits to his name \u2014 died of a stab wound to the torso and neck compression, according to digital records from the County of Los Angeles Medical Examiner. The manner has been ruled a homicide.<\/p>\n<p>Per TMZ, neck compression refers to the abnormal pressure put on a spinal cord or neck\u2019s nerve roots.<\/p>\n<p>Los Angeles Police previously told the outlet they received a 911 call from Michael, who told dispatchers he was \u201cthe son of man, I just killed the man of sin.\u201d He then reportedly told responding officers he was the man they wanted.<\/p>\n<p>Michael has since been arrested and charged with one count of murder with a special allegation that he personally used a deadly weapon, a knife. He faces 26 years to life behind bars.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=1934\">What Elon Musk\u2019s trillion would mean in real terms<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is not how anyone\u2019s life should end, stabbed in the chest and left dying in the front yard of a home,\u201d L.A. County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in a June 5 press release. \u201cThe victim 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. Like all murder victims, his life mattered and the person who inexplicably and violently took it must be held accountable for his actions.\u201d<\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Wendy told TMZ that she learned in the days leading up to the slaying that Michael had stopped taking medication for schizophrenia, with which he was diagnosed last July.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RELATED:\u00a0Details of Robert Carradine&amp;#8217;s death revealed in medical examiner report<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey know I loved him so much,\u201d Wendy said of Handy\u2019s family. \u201cI\u2019m so sorry. I\u2019m so sorry this happened. I\u2019m still in shock. I still can\u2019t comprehend it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>At the time of his death, Handy was in pre-production on the film, \u201cKickback, V.\u201d His myriad credits, in addition to the\u00a0box office smash \u201cTop Gun\u201d sequel and the original \u201cJumanji,\u201d included appearances on \u201c9-1-1,\u201d \u201cNCIS: Los Angeles,\u201d \u201cBreaking News,\u201d \u201cThe Practice,\u201d \u201cThe West Wing,\u201d \u201cNYPD Blue,\u201d and many more.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=1932\">Gas prices across California can vary from one station to another \u2014 and the differences are stark<\/a><\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Top Gun: Maverick&#8221; actor James Handy&#8217;s cause of death has been confirmed, just over a week after the New York native was fatally stabbed, for which his girlfriend&#8217;s son has been arrested.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1936,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1937","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - 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