Nearly three decades after the murder of hip-hop legend Tupac Shakur, the long-awaited trial of the man accused of orchestrating his killing has officially begun in Las Vegas.
Jury selection began Monday, August 10, in the trial of Duane “Keffe D” Davis, a former gang leader who prosecutors say played a central role in the September 1996 drive-by shooting that killed Shakur. Davis, 63, has pleaded not guilty to murder with a deadly weapon in connection with the case.
Shakur, who was 25, was riding in a BMW driven by Death Row Records co-founder Suge Knight near the Las Vegas Strip on September 7, 1996, when a white Cadillac pulled alongside the vehicle and gunfire erupted. Shakur was struck multiple times and died six days later from his injuries.
For years, the murder remained one of the most notorious unsolved cases in music history. That changed after investigators renewed their focus on Davis, who had publicly discussed the shooting for years.
Prosecutors allege Davis helped orchestrate the attack following an altercation earlier that night involving Shakur and Davis’ nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson, at the MGM Grand. Authorities have characterized Davis as the person who helped organize the retaliation and supplied the firearm used in the shooting.
Davis has previously acknowledged being in the Cadillac involved in the shooting and has discussed the events in interviews and his 2019 memoir, Compton Street Legend. However, he has denied being the gunman. His defense is expected to argue that his public statements were made for entertainment, attention and financial gain rather than being reliable admissions of guilt.
Davis was arrested in September 2023 after Las Vegas police renewed their investigation and executed a search warrant in connection with Shakur’s killing. He is the only person ever charged in the case.
Anderson, who investigators have long identified as a possible shooter, was killed in an unrelated shooting in 1998 and was never charged in Shakur’s death. Other individuals believed to have been involved have also died.
The trial is expected to last roughly a month, with prosecutors potentially calling dozens of witnesses. Among the names that have received attention is Knight, who was sitting beside Shakur when the shooting occurred. It remains uncertain whether he will ultimately testify.
The proceedings represent a major moment in a case that has captivated generations of hip-hop fans and remained surrounded by speculation, conflicting accounts and unanswered questions.
Shakur’s family and longtime supporters have waited nearly 30 years for the legal system to address his death. Now, for the first time, a jury will hear the evidence against an individual prosecutors say helped set the deadly attack in motion.
The trial could finally provide answers in one of music history’s most enduring mysteries — but Davis remains presumed innocent unless and until prosecutors prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
