Tupac Shakur murder trial opens as prosecutors say Keffe D planned 1996 shooting
Duane ‘Keffe D’ Davis faces life in prison as prosecutors rely on his interviews and memoir, while his defense calls the case ‘fiction’
Nearly three decades after the fatal shooting of Tupac Shakur in Las Vegas, prosecutors commenced the murder trial of Duane "Keffe D" Davis on Monday, arguing that the defendant's own words will substantiate his plan to carry out the attack. Chief Deputy District Attorney Binu Palal told jurors, "Let's be clear, Duane Davis did not pull the trigger.
But he did plan the shooting in retaliation for the beating of his nephew." Davis, 63, has pleaded not guilty to murder with a deadly weapon with the intent to promote, further, or assist a criminal gang and could face life in prison if convicted. The prosecution's case centers around a confrontation that occurred just hours before Shakur's death on September 7, 1996, outside a boxing match at the MGM Grand.
Davis' nephew, Orlando "Baby Lane" Anderson, was attacked by Shakur's entourage. Prosecutors claim Davis spent roughly two hours plotting retaliation before Shakur was gunned down in an act of revenge. Shakur's family, including his stepbrother Maurice "Mopreme" Shakur, listened from the courtroom gallery as prosecutors played audio of Davis recounting the incident during a 2008 interview with a federal task force.
Palal emphasized Davis' long-standing hostility towards Shakur, which eventually led him to repeatedly discuss the killing with law enforcement. The prosecution plans to use Davis' 2019 memoir, "Compton Street Legend," and several interviews he gave as key evidence. The defense, however, rejected the prosecution's account, arguing that it represents "fiction" rather than "fact" and that there are "no facts."
The defense attorney, Michael Sanft, pointed out missing records in the original investigation and accused law enforcement agencies of biased, sloppy, and incomplete work. The trial also briefly touched upon another notorious unsolved killing in hip-hop, the 1997 murder of Notorious B.I.G., whose real name was Christopher Wallace.
Davis had been considered a suspect in that case, but the judge, with prosecutors' agreement, told jurors that police do not believe Davis was involved. The trial is expected to last about a month, with 35 to 45 prosecution witnesses, including retired Las Vegas police officer Garry Dale, who testified that he and another officer stopped Shakur's vehicle for missing a license plate before the shooting.
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