Jury selection begins Monday in Las Vegas for the trial of Duane "Keffe D" Davis, 63, who faces murder charges in connection with the 1996 killing of rap icon Tupac Shakur. It's been 30 years since Shakur was shot multiple times while riding in a black BMW with music mogul Marion "Suge" Knight on Sept. 7, 1996, and died six days later. The case went cold for decades until Davis' own public statements and a tell-all memoir revived it.
Davis, a former leader of South Side Compton Crips, was arrested in 2023 and pleaded not guilty to one charge of murder with a deadly weapon with the intent to promote, further or assist a criminal gang. Judge Carli Kierny will preside over the trial in Clark County District Court, which is scheduled to last about a month.
The Prosecution's Case
Prosecutors aren't arguing that Davis pulled the trigger. They plan to prove he made the calls that led to Shakur's death and provided the gun used in the shooting. Davis co-authored the memoir "Compton Street Legends," which describes his exact role in the shooting. The book says Davis obtained a handgun from an associate and tossed it into the back seat of the Cadillac but doesn't say who fired the fatal shots.
Orlando "Baby Lane" Anderson, Davis' nephew, has long been considered the suspect who pulled the trigger, but charges were never brought against him. He died 28 years ago in an unrelated gang shootout in Compton, California. Two others who were in the car with Davis and Anderson — Deandrae "Freaky" Smith and Terry "Bubble Up" Brown — have since died as well.
Who Will Testify
Prosecutors expect to call between 35 and 45 witnesses, ranging from people who saw Shakur moments before he was shot to people who were in both Shakur and Davis' orbits at the time. Their witness list includes former Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman and members of Shakur's family, though not everyone on the list will necessarily testify.
Leonard Jefferson, a California resident who pulled up next to the BMW and snapped a photograph that became the last known photo of Shakur, is expected to testify. The state is also expected to call Denvonta Lee, who was affiliated with the South Side Crips. In grand jury testimony, Lee said rival gangs, the Crips and Mob Piru, were tied to dueling record labels Death Row Records and Bad Boy Records. Though he wasn't there that night, Lee also testified that Anderson didn't have a clear shot, so Smith took the gun and did the shooting. He also said Davis was in charge and gave the gun to Anderson, who gave it to Smith.
The witness list includes others who previously testified to the grand jury, including Malcolm Greenidge, a friend of Shakur's who was traveling in his entourage that night. Reggie Wright, who grew up in Compton and did security for Death Row Records, is also expected to testify. Other witnesses will be new, including a former member of Death Row's security team and a former member of Mob Piru who was at Club 662 the night Shakur was shot. Witnesses also include former police officers and detectives, as well as gang experts.
The Defense Strategy
Davis' defense attorney is expected to call less than a handful of witnesses, including one expert in the area of false confessions and coercive interrogation techniques. Defense attorney Michael Sanft told The Associated Press that Knight would be a good witness for Davis' defense if he did testify.
Prosecutors requested to have multiple out-of-state witnesses testify, and it's unclear who those people are. One of the witnesses is in prison in California, according to court records. Knight is serving a 28-year prison sentence in California for running over and killing a Compton businessman outside a burger stand 11 years ago in January 2015. He previously said he wouldn't testify in Davis' case. As the only other living eyewitness who was in one of the two vehicles that night, Knight's testimony could make or break the case.
Fans have also speculated whether Sean "Diddy" Combs will testify. Combs is currently serving a four-year prison sentence in New Jersey following his conviction of prostitution-related charges. In his book, Davis alleged Combs wanted Knight and Shakur dead and offered Davis money to kill them. Combs has long denied having any involvement in the shooting. A spokesperson for Combs didn't return emailed requests asking whether he plans to testify and his name doesn't appear on any witness list.
Why This Matters:
Three decades after Tupac Shakur's death, this trial represents the first time anyone has been held legally accountable for killing one of the most influential rappers of all time. The case highlights how gang violence and its aftermath continue to devastate communities, leaving families without answers and justice delayed for generations. The prosecution's reliance on testimony from gang-affiliated witnesses and a defendant's own memoir raises critical questions about how the criminal justice system handles cold cases when traditional evidence has disappeared and key witnesses have died. For Shakur's family and the countless fans who've demanded accountability, this trial offers a chance at closure that seemed impossible just a few years ago. The outcome will also test whether prosecutors can successfully build a case around orchestrating violence rather than pulling the trigger — a legal strategy that could have implications for how gang-related murders are prosecuted in the future.