Man charged with arranging Tupac Shakur's murder heads to trial 30 years after hip-hop legend's death
Duane (Keffe D) Davis facing murder charge after writing about alleged role in Shakur's 1996 shooting death
A former gang member's murder trial concerning the unsolved shooting death of hip-hop legend Tupac Shakur began with jury selection on Monday, almost 30 years after the influential rapper was shot and killed.
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rapper → charge → Monday
Duane (Keffe D) Davis, 63, faces a single count of murder with a deadly weapon with the intent to promote, further or assist a criminal gang in Shakur's death in 1996.
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Davis → face → 1996
Davis, who has been in custody since 2023, has pleaded not guilty.
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who → plead → 2023
The trial, which is taking place in Las Vegas, where the shooting took place, starts with jury selection, and is expected to last about a month.
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shooting → take → selection
Prosecutors in the trial will not attempt to prove that Davis pulled the trigger.
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Davis → attempt → trigger
Instead, they'll try to convince a jury that he was the "shot caller" — slang for a leader or decision maker — of the group that targeted Shakur in the Sept. 7, 1996, shooting on the Las Vegas Strip.
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that → try → Strip
Wearing a blue dress shirt and tie, Davis sat quietly next to his attorney Monday while Nevada Judge Carli Kierny asked a group of 75 potential jurors questions, including if they have any medical issues, language barriers or conflicts with serving.
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they → wear → issues
William Leslane, Shakur's cousin, said the trial may bring accountability, but that it's too little, too late to bring justice.
"Justice has been foregone years ago.
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Justice → say → justice
The night my cousin was murdered — there should have been an intense investigation at that time," he said in an interview.
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he → murder → interview
"We're here 30 years later, so justice is a little bit weakened.
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justice → weaken → ?
Much of the evidence in the case will come from a book Davis co-wrote.
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Davis → come → book
Shakur, who was 25 when he died, was one of rap's brightest rising stars, known for hits such as Dear Mama and California Love.
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he → die → Mama
Though born in New York City, Shakur was associated with West Coast hip-hop.
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Shakur → bear → hop
He released four solo albums during his life, followed by six posthumous albums.
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He → release → albums
Tupac is being digitally resurrected again, this time in a video game.
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Tupac → resurrect → game
Not everyone likes it
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everyone → like → it
Why solving Tupac Shakur's murder still matters
At the time of his death, Tupac was signed with Death Row Records, which was one of rap's most notorious labels.
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which → solve → labels
Marion (Suge) Knight, the co-founder and then-CEO of Death Row Records, was with Shakur when he was shot.
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he → shoot → Shakur
Knight, the only other living witness to the shooting, told ABC News last week that he will not co-operate with law enforcement and does not want to testify.
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he → live → enforcement
Knight is serving a 28-year prison sentence in California for running over and killing a Compton businessman outside a burger stand in January 2015.
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Knight → serve → January
The night of the shooting
Shakur and Knight were in Las Vegas the night of Sept. 7 to watch a boxing match between Mike Tyson and Bruce Seldon.
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Shakur → watch → Tyson
Following the fight, the pair drove around Las Vegas in a Death Row-owned BMW.
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pair → follow → BMW
At approximately 11:15 p.m., a Cadillac pulled up next to them and fired multiple shots, hitting Shakur four times.
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Cadillac → pull → Shakur
Though Knight was also injured in the shooting, he managed to drive the car away and got the attention of emergency services.
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he → injure → services
Shakur died from his injuries six days later on Sept. 13.
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Shakur → die → Sept.
The murder spurred intense speculation and conspiracy theories about the perpetrators and the circumstances of the shooting, including theories that Shakur had not died.
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Shakur → spur → theories
The rivalry fuelled theories that rapper Notorious B.I.G. — Shakur's New York-based adversary — was involved.
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B.I.G. → fuel → theories
He died in a shooting less than a year later.
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He → die → shooting
What Davis wrote about the shooting
In his book, Davis said the shooting of Shakur was about revenge.
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shooting → write → revenge
Earlier that evening, he wrote, his nephew, Baby Lane, said people from Death Row had attacked him.
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people → write → him
He wrote in his book that Shakur, Knight and others "didn't have any business putting their hands on Baby Lane.
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Shakur → write → Lane
Them jumping on my nephew gave us the green light to want to do something to their ass."
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Them → jump → ass
Davis also said that Shakur was "a guppy that got swallowed up by some ferocious sharks.
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that → say → sharks
He shouldn't have ever got involved in that bullshit of trying to be a thug."
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He → involve → bullshit
Davis and his gang were able to find Shakur's car because he was greeting fans and waving to them from the window of the BMW.
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he → find → BMW
Had he not been hanging out of the window, Davis said, the gang would not have seen him.
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gang → hang → him
Davis recalled the shooting in detail.
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Davis → recall → detail
He did not mention who fired the fatal shots, but said he threw the pistol that killed Shakur into the back seat.
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that → mention → seat
He said Knight immediately recognized them when their Cadillac pulled up to the BMW.
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Cadillac → say → BMW
"Tupac made an erratic move and began to reach down beneath his seat," Davis wrote.
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Davis → make → seat
…and 18 more, not listed.
