Former Pro Boxer to Stand Trial in Cold Case Murder

Prosecutors say DNA evidence linked one-time heavyweight boxer Exum Speight to the 1987 murder of his then-manager

Former professional boxer Exum Speight was ordered today to stand trial for the cold case murder of his one-time manager.

Thirty-year-old Douglas Stumler was found stabbed and beaten to death in his West Los Angeles apartment March 29, 1987. Investigators said he had been dead for two days by the time his body was discovered.

Speight, a former heavyweight boxer, was arrested at his San Fernando home in September, after detectives say they were able to connect him to the crime through DNA nearly a quarter-century after Stumler’s death.

At the time of his murder, Stumler worked for the Los Angeles County Housing Authority, but managed the careers of Speight, now 50, and a few other boxers in his spare time.

The two men were roommates at one time, but were no longer living together at the time of Stumler’s death. Stumler was discovered by another worried friend in his apartment in the 1200 block of South La Cienega Boulevard.

Speight was once an up-and-coming boxer, but retired from professional boxing in the late 1990s. Detectives said at the time of his arrest that he had worked odd security jobs following his retirement.

Speight has remained in custody since his arrest, in lieu of more than $1 million bail.

If convicted, Speight faces life in state prison.

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