Still No Suspect Description in Slaying of Couple

An autopsy was completed Tuesday in the murder investigation of a USC public safety officer and his fiance, once a Long Beach basketball player and until Sunday an admired coach at Cal State Fullerton.

The couple was discovered shot to death Sunday night in his car atop the Irvine parking garage of their apartment, police said.

investigators continued to search for the culprit. The autopsy to determine the cause and nature of 27-year-old Keith Lawrence's death took most of the day, so coroner's investigators were not able to begin the autopsy for the cause of death of Monica Quan, 28, said Orange County Sheriff's Department's Jim Amormino.

Quan's autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday, he said. Irvine investigators set up a tip line at (949) 724-7192.

Police received a call at 9:10 p.m. Sunday about a person slumped over in a parked car at 2100 Scholarship and went to investigate, Irvine police Lt. Julia Engen said. Lawrence and Quan were found dead in his Kia, which was parked at the top of the five-story parking structure, Engen said.

``Their deaths are being investigated at a double homicide,'' Engen said. ``There is no suspect information at this time.'' There's no evidence they were being robbed, Engen added. The parking structure and high-density residential community is highly secure with key card access only, she said.

 Quan was a Walnut High School star basketball player, and went on to play at where she had once appied for a coaching job. At the time of her death, Quan was an assistant coach for the Cal State Fullerton women's basketball team, and before that was an assistant coach at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks.

``She was one of those great individuals that when they're in your life, your life is better,'' said California Lutheran women's basketball head coach Roy Dow. ``She had a great passion for basketball.''

Dow recalled how he would receive calls from Quan when she was away from work about a unique play she saw during a game on television or to tell him a documentary was being aired about the University of Connecticut women's basketball team.

Quan's father, a current or former LAPD officer, told Dow recently about how she was so intent on watching a game that when she went out to dribble the basketball during commercial breaks, ``she'd watch the TV through the screen door.''

Quan rooted for the Lakers, but was a big Michael Jordan fan and had an ``incredible collection of Nike sneakers,'' Dow said. When they would take recruits around campus, Dow would stay on the campus sidewalks because Quan ``was absolutely loathe to walk on the grass and get her sneakers dirty,'' the coach recalled.

Dow said Quan called him about a week ago to tell him about her engagement to Lawrence. ``She was a very private person, and she told me she didn't want me to hear it through the grapevine,'' Dow said.

The couple met while at Concordia University in Irvine, where they both played basketball, Dow said. Lawrence was seeking a career in law enforcement, which made him a good match for Quan, whose father was an officer with the Los Angeles Police Department, Dow said. Dow said Quan recruited the current seniors on the California Lutheran team. ``I don't know what we're going to tell them,'' Dow said of the team. ``We'll allow everyone an opportunity to express their grief. But we're certainly going forward. We're going to find our way to grieve and celebrate her life.''

Lawrence, who graduated from the Ventura County Sheriff's Academy, was working as a patrol officer at USC's Department of Public Safety. He joined the department in August, said Carl Marziali, USC's assistant vice president of media relations. John Thomas, the chief of USC's Department of Public Safety, issued a statement to his officers today, calling the murders ``senseless'' and asking for their ``thoughts and prayers'' for the victims' families and friends.

``During his brief tenure of service here at USC, Officer Lawrence proved to be an honorable, compassionate and professional member of our department and the Trojan family,'' Thomas said. `We are a better department and the USC campus community is a safer place as a result of his service.''

Mildred Garcia, Cal State Fullerton's president, characterized the deaths as ``tragic and heart-wrenching.'' Quan was in her second season working under Coach Marcia Foster, who said, ``There really are no words to convey the sadness we feel at the loss, those of us who have had the privilege of working with her. We had just shared a moment of incredible joy with Monica after her recent engagement.'' Foster added, ``A really bright light was put out way too soon. Someone whose passion was impacting young women with the game of basketball.

``As an assistant, she was someone I counted on to tell me the truth. I loved that about her -- I loved her work ethic and her passion for life. We've got some work to do, we've got to do something to stop this violence. Too many women are being impacted by it.''

Cal State Fullerton Athletic Director Jim Donovan said, ``We were very shocked and saddened to learn what's happened to Monica. She was a second-year coach for us and a very special person.''

Quan, a star athlete at Walnut High School, played basketball at Cal State Long Beach from 2003-05 before transferring to Concordia University in Irvine, where she graduated in 2007 with a degree in exercise and sports science. In 2009, she earned a master's degree.