Jurors began deliberating Monday in the murder trial over the death of Tupac Shakur after attorneys made their final pitch in closing arguments.
Duane “Keffe D” Davis, 63, is the only person ever prosecuted in connection with the 1996 shooting near the Strip that fatally wounded the hip-hop icon and injured Death Row Records CEO Marion “Suge” Knight, whose head was grazed by a bullet.
With physical evidence against Davis scarce, the outcome will likely hinge on Davis’ prior statements to law enforcement, to the media and in a memoir he now disputes writing which described his involvement in the slaying, including providing a gun to the shooter.
In an unusual move, Davis’ lawyer has attacked his client’s credibility.
“There are no facts to point to Keffe,” attorney Michael Sanft said in his opening statement. “Not one.”
Authorities have alleged Davis was the “shot-caller” who conceived the plan to exact revenge on Shakur and Knight in retaliation for an attack by Shakur and his entourage against Davis’ nephew, Orlando Anderson, earlier that night at the MGM Grand.
According to prosecutors, the Bloods-associated Mob Piru gang had ties to Death Row Records, and the South Side Crips — of which prosecutors say Davis was a leader — were associated with Bad Boy Records, a label owned by Sean “Diddy” Combs.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Contact Noble Brigham at nbrigham@reviewjournal.com.
