Father of Lawrence
King's Killer Found Dead

Bill McInerney -- the father of 15-year-old Brandon McInerney (pictured), who will soon face first-degree murder charges with a hate-crime enhancement in the death of gay teen Lawrence King -- was found dead in the living room of his Silver Strand, Calif., home shortly after 8 a.m. today, reports the Los Angeles Times .

The body of the 45-year-old McInerney was discovered by a friend who was supposed to drive him to a court hearing in his son's murder trial.

Brandon McInerney is being charged as an adult for shooting to death 15-year-old Lawrence King on February 12, 2008. King was openly gay, and many reports have described him as pursuing the troubled young McInerney, who grew up in a household marred by violence and drugs. The younger McInerney was scheduled to begin a preliminary hearing today to determine if there is enough evidence to move to a trial, officials said. That hearing was postponed.

James Baroni, Ventura County's chief deputy medical examiner, said there was no sign of foul play or suicide at the father's home. An autopsy is under way, and a cause of death should be available later today, the deputy medical examiner said.

"Nothing at the scene was a red flag," he told the Times .

The elder McInerney was facing recent felony charges of making criminal threats against his sister, Maura McInerney. He also was charged with possessing a firearm within 10 years of a domestic-violence conviction, records show.