An aging ex-gang leader was sentenced Tuesday to 40 years to life in prison for orchestrating the 1996 drive-by shooting of rap icon Tupac Shakur near the Las Vegas Strip.
asserted
leader → age → Strip
The killing, rooted in a long-running gang feud, had gone unsolved for decades — captivating the public and tormenting Shakur’s loved ones — until Duane “Keffe D” Davis started bragging about it in interviews and a memoir.
Davis, 63, was convicted in August of first-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon.
asserted
Davis → root → weapon
A former leader of the South Side Compton Crips, Davis stared blankly at Judge Carli Kierny as she imposed a penalty that, even with credit for time served, won’t see him eligible for parole until he’s at least 100.
asserted
he → star → parole
“You don’t get to take a man from his family, you don’t get to take his very life, his whole future from him and just walk away from it, especially when that man is Tupac Shakur,” Kierny said.
asserted
Kierny → get → it
“The world never forgot about him and his death and neither did Las Vegas.”
asserted
Vegas → forget → him
Davis, whose lawyer said he will appeal his conviction, is the only person ever charged in Shakur’s death.
asserted
he → say → death
The late rapper’s legend has only grown in the years since, and his songs continue to resonate with themes of hardship, love and Black struggles.
asserted
songs → grow → hardship
Tupac’s family describes their loss
asserted
family → describe → loss
Shakur’s sister, Sekyiwa “Set” Shakur, said it was hard listening over and over again to Davis describe how he hunted and killed her brother, cutting him down at age 25, just as his popularity as a musician and actor was peaking.
asserted
popularity → say → musician
Gentle and kind, Shakur was his family’s protector, she said.
asserted
she → say → ?
Had he survived injuries that included the loss of a lung, he would have left rapping behind and delved into activism, treading the path of luminaries like Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr., and perhaps even politics, she said.
asserted
she → survive → X
“This man’s life mattered,” Sekyiwa Shakur said as family members cried in the audience.
asserted
members → matter → audience
Shakur’s brother, Maurice “Mopreme” Shakur, said the killing has been “devastating, heartbreaking and sad” for him, his family and Shakur’s fans.
asserted
killing → say → him
An unsolved mystery for more than two decades
Davis spoke briefly in court, telling the judge he wanted pictures and other items that police took from his house.
asserted
police → speak → house
Asked if there was anything else he wanted to say, Davis said: “No, I’m good.”
asserted
I → ask → ?
Davis was charged after giving interviews and publishing a tell-all memoir in 2019 detailing what he said was his role in the infamous shooting.
asserted
he → charge → shooting
On the night of Sept. 7, 1996, Shakur was in the passenger seat of a black BMW with music mogul Marion “Suge” Knight when a white Cadillac pulled up at a red light.
asserted
Cadillac → pull → light
Shots erupted.
asserted
Shots → erupt → ?
Shakur was hit multiple times and died six days later, while Knight survived.
asserted
Knight → hit → ?
In his memoir, Davis explained he was seeking retaliation for Shakur and his entourage beating up Davis’ nephew hours before the shooting.
asserted
Shakur → explain → shooting
He said he was in the passenger seat of the Cadillac and passed the gun to the backseat, where shots were fired.
asserted
shots → say → backseat
Davis spoke to detectives years before but avoided prosecution because of an agreement he made with law enforcement.
asserted
he → speak → enforcement
During the weekslong trial, prosecutors relied on Davis’ own statements to law enforcement and documentarians.
asserted
prosecutors → rely → enforcement
They argued Davis orchestrated the shooting and provided the gun used in Shakur’s death, which was the result of a rivalry between the South Side Compton Crips and Mob Piru.
asserted
which → argue → Crips
Davis’ defense attorney pointed to a lack of physical evidence that connected his client to the 30-year-old crime, and he portrayed Davis as a liar who was trying to make money.
asserted
who → point → money
After nine days of hearing testimony in August, the jury deliberated for three hours before turning over the guilty verdict.
asserted
jury → deliberate → verdict
Insufficient evidence to charge anyone else
One Shakur fan, rapper Din “Lil Therapy” Malone, said justice is “halfway done” and wants to see other people charged.
asserted
people → charge → anyone
“I’ve been grieving for 30 years plus,” he said at the courthouse Tuesday.
asserted
he → grieve → courthouse
“I still got a frog in my throat from crying.”
The three other people allegedly in the Cadillac with Davis have died.
uncertain
people → get → Davis
They included Davis’ nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson, whom Davis said was the one who pulled the trigger.
asserted
who → include → trigger
Another name that has come up: Sean “Diddy” Combs.
asserted
that → come → ?
Witnesses testified at Davis’ trial that the imprisoned music mogul used members of the South Side Compton Crips for security for his label, Bad Boy Records.
asserted
mogul → testify → label
Davis alleged in his book and public statements that Combs offered him money to kill Shakur and Knight.
asserted
Combs → allege → Shakur
Combs, who is serving a four-year prison sentence after being convicted of prostitution-related offenses, has repeatedly denied any involvement in the death of Shakur.
asserted
who → serve → Shakur
Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson has said his office doesn’t have enough evidence to charge anyone else.
asserted
office → say → anyone
If more information comes to light, he said, prosecutors can always consider filing additional charges.
asserted
prosecutors → come → charges
“While no amount of time in prison can bring Tupac back, we hope this sentencing brings some measure of closure and peace to his family after nearly 30 years,” Wolfson said in a statement.
asserted
Wolfson → bring → statement
The case, he said, “is a reminder that no matter how much time passes, our commitment to seeking justice never wavers.”
asserted
commitment → say → justice
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