Nearly 30 years ago, Tupac Shakur, known by the stage name 2Pac, was killed in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas, Nevada.
One of four men in a white Cadillac fired 13 shots into the 25-year-old rap legend’s vehicle, according to TIME reporting from September 1996. Shakur was riding with the co-founder of Death Row Records, Marion “Suge” Knight. Knight was grazed by a bullet but survived. Shakur was shot multiple times, and one bullet tore through his lung; he was pronounced dead at the hospital six days later on Sept. 13, 1996.
The events that unfolded have been the subject of many true crime documentaries, books, and podcasts. But one fundamental question has remained unresolved: Who was responsible for Shakur’s death?
The first person ever charged in Shakur’s murder faces trial on Monday in Nevada.
Who is on trial for the murder of Tupac Shakur? And why now?
On trial is Duane “Keffe D” Davis, 63, a former leader of the South Side Compton Crips. At the time of Shakur’s murder, the Crips were associated with the New York-based Bad Boy Records amid a hip-hop rivalry with the Los Angeles-based Death Row Records, which signed Shakur.
Davis is not accused of firing the shots that killed Shakur; rather, prosecutors allege that he orchestrated the attack. He is charged with “murder with a deadly weapon with the intent to promote, further, or assist a criminal gang.” Under Nevada law, someone who aids or abets a crime—or encourages, hires, commands, or otherwise induces another person to commit it—can be prosecuted as a principal.
Shakur’s murder went unsolved for years, but it never faded from public interest. In 2008, law enforcement interviewed Davis, but a proffer agreement that his defense says prevented his statements from later being used against him.
In 2019, Davis published his memoir, “Compton Street Legend.” He gave multiple interviews promoting his book—and the role of the Crips in Shakur’s death. He describes himself as “one of the only living eyewitnesses to Tupac’s killing.”
“Tupac was a guppy that got swallowed up by some ferocious sharks,” Davis wrote, though he said he felt “a deep sense of remorse for what happened.”
Those public disclosures helped revive the investigation.
Davis was arrested in 2023, when he was charged with obtaining a gun “for the purpose of seeking retribution against” Shakur and Knight. Prosecutors allege that the gun Davis obtained the night of the shooting was expressly intended to deliver retribution for an incident earlier in the evening in which Shakur and his associates attacked Davis’s nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson.
The altercation took place after Shakur and Knight attended Mike Tyson’s boxing match at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Footage from the hotel lobby shows the two, along with others in their entourage, confronting Anderson after the match.
“We couldn’t let no record company studio gangsters do us like that,” Davis wrote in his memoir, before describing the moment that he and three other men—his nephew Anderson, DeAndre “Dre” Smith, and Terrence “T-Brown” Brown, all of whom have since died—eventually spotted Shakur on the street in Las Vegas that night.
“No words exchanged, the time for talking had passed,” he said.
Davis described passing a handgun to the back of the Cadillac as they approached Shakur’s vehicle in his book—but he did not say who fired the fatal shots. It remains unclear which of the two individuals in the backseat, Anderson or Smith, actually shot Shakur.
At a press conference after Davis’s arrest, Las Vegas police acknowledged that his public appearances to promote the memoir allowed them to “reinvigorate” the case.
“We knew at this time that this was likely our last time to take a run at this case to successfully solve this case and bring forth a criminal,” then-Lt. Jason Johansson of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said.
Davis’s defense has sought to separate him from the book’s contents, claiming that co-writer Yusuf Jah had exaggerated events and added false information in an attempt to sell copies. His lawyers argue that the book was intended for entertainment value only.
But Clark County District Judge Carli Kierny ruled that the memoir would be admissible evidence, saying at a June 30 hearing that Davis has not promoted the book as a work of fiction and rather “encourages people to buy it to get the real truth.”
Davis’s defense also argued that an agreement with law enforcement officers in 2008 established that the contents of his interview could not be used against him. While expressing concerns about the possible protections surrounding that interview, Kierny acknowledged that his statements were given voluntarily and may now be admissible.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Marc DiGiacomo told the court: “Had he decided to never write the book, he would not probably have ever been prosecuted for the crime.”
Davis pleaded not guilty; however, if he is convicted, he could face life in prison without parole.
What to know about the key players in the courtroom
The jury, which was selected last week, consists of six men and 10 women—four of whom are alternates.
Davis’s defense is led by Michael Sanft, who took the case pro bono, and the prosecution is led by DiGiacomo.
A partial witness list was shared with potential jurors last week. It included Knight, who is serving a 28-year prison sentence in California after pleading “no contest” to voluntary manslaughter for fatally striking the owner of Heavyweight Records, Terry Carter, with his car in 2015. He told ABC News last week that he would not testify.
“This trial has nothing to do with me and if somebody brings me there, it’s gonna hurt whoever brings me there. I promise you that,” Knight said in the interview.
Members of Shakur’s family are also on the potential witness list, including his sister Sekyiwa Shakur and his stepbrother Maurice “Mopreme” Shakur.
Prosecutors are expected to call between 35 and 45 witnesses during the trial, which is expected to last four to five weeks.
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