Sandy man sentenced to prison for manslaughter of fleeing woman

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WEST JORDAN — A Sandy man convicted of manslaughter for shooting a woman as she ran from his house was sentenced to prison Thursday.

Larry Kent Graff, 54, was sentenced to one to 15 years in prison, his attorney confirmed, with credit given for the 292 days he has spent in jail since the shooting.

Graff was charged with murder, a first-degree felony, in the death of 26-year-old Candice Melo. However, a jury in September opted to convict Graff of a lesser charge of manslaughter, a second-degree felony.

Graff shot Melo, who had been staying at his Sandy home, 343 E. Gary Ave. (9560 South), as she ran from the house with a laptop computer on Dec. 18, 2014. Melo and Graff's girlfriend had been arguing over what Melo owed for her weeklong stay as she prepared to leave, according to prosecutors.

Defense attorney Greg Skordas argued during the trial that Graff acknowledged he was wrong to shoot Melo and that he accepted responsibility for doing so.

However, Skordas claimed Graff was not ultimately responsible for Melo's death, saying she ultimately died from a lack of medical attention after police who believed she was already dead left her lying in Graff's driveway for 30 minutes.

Graff also faced a charge of attempted murder at trial, a first-degree felony, for firing a single shot at Melo's boyfriend as he ran from the house. The jury was hung on that count.