Under a scorching desert canopy on Fremont Street, tourists rode zip lines while a courtroom three blocks away filled with jurors, lawyers and a growing crowd of observers. The Regional Justice Center in downtown Las Vegas opened the first week of a highly publicized murder trial involving Duane “Keffe D” Davis, the sole suspect ever charged in the 1996 shooting of Tupac Shakur.
Defense attacks decades‑long narrative
Defense attorney Michael Sanft told the jury that Davis’s numerous public statements – from a secret 1998 LAPD interview to recent podcasts, a 2018 documentary appearance and a 2019 memoir titled Compton Street Legend – constitute a two‑decade‑long fabrication. Sanft displayed the word “BULLSH*T” in all caps on a slide, summarizing his client’s alleged self‑promotion.
Prosecutor Binu Palal countered that Davis repeatedly confessed, both privately and publicly, to feeling anger and planning a revenge drive‑by that resulted in Shakur’s death. Palal warned jurors that “silence means survival” for the defendant, who has a history of speaking openly about the case.
Evidence from a pre‑digital era
The trial has required the court to present technology from the mid‑1990s. A paper hotel bill showing 75‑cent local calls and an analog VHS tape of surveillance footage from the MGM Grand – which captured Shakur’s entourage leaving after an assault on Davis’s nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson – were played for the jury. Former Las Vegas police officer Dean O’Kelley explained that homicide detectives still maintain a VHS player to view such evidence.
Witnesses have also highlighted the passage of time. Many investigators are retired and testified via Zoom from distant homes, often battling technical glitches. Reggie Wright, Jr., former head of security for Death Row Records, testified from an electric scooter after Long Covid left him unable to walk to the stand.
Key testimonies and disputed claims
Davis’s own words have become central to the case. In a 2018 BET documentary, he claimed he needed to “get the story off his chest.” He later admitted he was paid for the appearance. A 2019 book expanded on those claims, prompting prosecutors to reveal that Davis had been cooperating with police since 1998, initially hoping to lessen his own drug‑charge penalties.
During a recorded 2008 interview, Davis told LAPD detective Greg Kading that he had arranged to obtain the gun used in Shakur’s murder, originally intending to fire it himself but later passing it to his nephew. He also alleged that music executive Sean “Puffy” Combs (now known as Diddy) offered a million dollars for the killing, a claim the rapper’s representatives have denied.
Defendant’s reaction and courtroom tensions
After a week of listening to recordings of Davis’s own lengthy recounting of his criminal past, the defendant finally spoke, accusing the prosecutor’s office of publishing his home address and that of his sister, and claiming his house and his wife’s car had been vandalized. Judge Carli Kierny reminded both sides to adhere to court rules regarding privacy and evidence.
The jury will continue deliberations over the next several weeks as the trial proceeds toward a verdict that could finally resolve a murder case that has haunted the hip‑hop community for nearly three decades.
Original reporting: El Paso News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
