Duane Davis faces life sentence in Las Vegas Tupac Shakur killing

Duane “Keffe D” Davis faces sentencing Tuesday in Las Vegas for orchestrating a deadly 1996 drive-by shooting. He faces life in prison without the possibility of parole. Davis, 63, was convicted in August of first-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon. The conviction marks the only criminal charge ever filed in the death of Tupac Shakur.

The Clark County District Attorney’s office does not believe it has sufficient evidence to charge anyone else. Prosecutors have not established criminal charges against any other living person in the case.

On the night of Sept. 7, 1996, Shakur sat in a black BMW with music mogul Marion “Suge” Knight. A white Cadillac pulled up at a red light, and shots erupted off the Las Vegas Strip. Shakur was shot multiple times and died six days later. Knight survived.

The killing went unsolved for decades. Davis is a former leader of the South Side Compton Crips. He published his role in his 2019 tell-all memoir. Davis said Shakur and his entourage beat up Davis’ nephew hours before the shooting. He said he sought retaliation.

Davis said he passed the gun to the backseat from the passenger seat of the Cadillac. Shots were fired from that backseat. Davis had spoken to detectives years before. He avoided prosecution because of an agreement with law enforcement.

During the weekslong trial, prosecutors relied on statements Davis made to detectives and documentarians. They argued Davis provided the gun. They said the shooting stemmed from a rivalry between the South Side Compton Crips and Mob Piru.

The defense pointed to a lack of physical evidence linking Davis to the crime. His defense attorney portrayed Davis as a liar trying to make money. Jurors heard testimony for nine days in August. They deliberated for three hours before returning the guilty verdict. Davis said he plans to appeal.

Shakur’s family is expected to speak at the hearing. His siblings Maurice “Mopreme” Shakur and Sekyiwa “Set” Shakur are slated to address the court. Following the verdict, prosecutor Binu Palal addressed reporters.

“They loved that man. And the arrogance that Mr. Davis had in expressing his joy in killing that man ultimately was his undoing,” Palal said.

The three other people allegedly inside the Cadillac have all died. That includes Davis’ nephew Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson, whom Davis named as the shooter.

Witnesses testified Sean “Diddy” Combs used South Side Compton Crips members for security for Bad Boy Records. Davis alleged in his book that Combs offered him money to kill Shakur and Knight. Combs has repeatedly denied any involvement. He is serving a four-year sentence for prostitution-related convictions.

Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson spoke after the verdict.

“But like any other case, if we come into more information, more evidence, we can always consider filing additional charges,” he said following the guilty verdict. “But today, we don’t believe that’s the appropriate move to make.”

A sentencing hearing allows a judge to hear impact statements from victims before issuing penalties. Under state criminal proceedings, formal judgments trigger deadlines for defense lawyers to submit notices of appeal.

The Tuesday sentencing proceedings will take place in Clark County court in Las Vegas.