Murder-Rape Suspect’s Arraignment Is Delayed

The arraignment of a 20-year-old Los Angeles man, held in the murder of an Inglewood mother and the rape of her daughter, was postponed Friday until early next month.

Deshawn Malone was arrested last week by Inglewood police in the shooting death of 36-year-old Davette Beatley. Police said Malone killed Beatley after sexually assaulting her and her preteen daughter at her home.

According to police, Malone has also been linked by fingerprint evidence to an Oct. 27 burglary and rape of another woman in the same neighborhood, just south of Century Boulevard next to a three-school complex that includes Morningside High School.

The killer, police said, forced his way into Beatley’s apartment on England Avenue as Beatley was returning from taking out the trash. Inside the apartment, Beatley’s three children and a friend were watching television.

Beatley and her daughter, who was not identified, were then raped and Beatley shot.

Malone is being held in Los Angeles County Jail. His arraignment had been set for Friday but was delayed until Dec. 3 because the charges against him “are numerous and complex,” according to Sgt. Alex Perez, public information officer for the Inglewood Police Department.

Perez credited strong community cooperation with helping to identify the suspect. Armed with only a composite drawing of the alleged killer, police canvassed the neighborhood all day Monday, asking residents if they knew anyone who looked like the drawing.

Once they obtained a tentative identification, police were able to confirm that the man frequented the neighborhood, although he had several Los Angeles addresses, Perez said. He was arrested in the county’s Athens area in the 11100 block of South Berendo Avenue.