Murder Trial of Duane Davis Opens with Prosecutors Linking It to Tupac Shakur's Death
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The long-awaited murder trial of Duane "Keffe D" Davis opened Monday with prosecutors laying out a detailed account of what they say led to the fatal 1996 shooting of rap icon Tupac Shakur, arguing that Davis orchestrated a retaliatory attack after Shakur and members of his entourage assaulted Davis' nephew, Orlando Anderson, hours earlier on the Las Vegas Strip.
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Washington Times CultureProsecutors say Davis called for shooting that was fueled by long gang feud The long, lingering question of who shot Tupac may stay unanswered. But prosecutors hope to prove that Davis was the shot caller and provided the weapon.
NYT ArtsThere Are Few Witnesses to Tupac Shakur’s Drive-by Shooting Prosecutors say Duane Davis and three other men who are now deceased were involved in the fatal confrontation in 1996.
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In 2008, Davis spoke to investigators looking into the deaths of Shakur and Notorious B.I.G., born Christopher Wallace. During the investigation, Davis was under an agreement that what he said about Shakur’s killing couldn’t be used against him. But nearly 10 years later, Davis published a book with those details and participated in media interviews in which he laid out his role in the shooting.
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NewsweekDuane Davis Spoke With Investigators in a Recorded Interview A major part of the state's case centers on statements Davis allegedly made years after Shakur's killing while he was facing unrelated federal drug charges.
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Ultimately, the defense told jurors that prosecutors would ask them to convict based largely on unverified statements from witnesses with credibility issues. "You have to corroborate everything I say in order for it to be true," the attorney argued, contending the state cannot prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Davis committed first-degree murder or orchestrated the killing of Shakur.
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Washington Times CultureDavis has pleaded not guilty. His defense attorneys argue there is no evidence he directed the shooting and the state is relying on witnesses who weren’t there.
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Suge Knight, a hip-hop mogul now in prison, is among the witnesses to the 1996 shooting.
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Washington Times CultureKnight, the West Coast hip-hop mogul who was once one of the most important and most feared men in music, is the only surviving eyewitness other than the defendant. He is on the witness list and may be summoned. He has said he wants no part in the trial. He is serving a 28-year prison sentence in California for running over and killing a Compton businessman in 2015.
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Independent claims that didn't surface elsewhere in our corpus. Treat as supplementary — not corroborated across outlets.
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01 Newsweek Davis' attorney Michael Sanft responded to the allegations made by the prosecutor in his opening statement, questioning the validity of the claims made and stating, "There's no facts."
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02 NYT Arts Duane Davis’s memoir is key evidence in his trial. He now claims it’s fiction.
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03 Washington Times Culture The long-unsolved drive-by shooting gripped the hip-hop community, partly because no one was charged until Davis was indicted in 2023.
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- nyt-arts
- washtimes-culture
- newsweek