Duane “Keffe D” Davis has been found guilty of first-degree murder with a deadly weapon in the 1996 killing of rap icon Tupac Shakur, bringing a dramatic end to a case that remained officially unsolved for almost 30 years.
A 12-person Las Vegas jury returned the unanimous verdict after deliberating for less than three hours. Davis, 63, was the only person ever charged in connection with Shakur’s killing and now faces a possible sentence of life in prison without parole. After the verdict was read, he told the judge he plans to appeal.
Prosecutors did not accuse Davis of personally firing the bullets that killed Shakur. Their case was that the former South Side Compton Crips leader organized the retaliatory attack after Shakur and members of his entourage beat Davis’ nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson, inside the MGM Grand on September 7, 1996.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Binu Palal told jurors that Davis obtained a gun, gathered members of his crew and went looking for Shakur and Death Row Records boss Marion “Suge” Knight. Hours after the casino fight, a white Cadillac pulled alongside Knight’s BMW near the Las Vegas Strip and opened fire.
Shakur, 25, was struck four times and died six days later. Knight survived the attack.
At the center of the prosecution’s case were Davis’ own words. Over the years, he repeatedly described his involvement in the killing through interviews, conversations with investigators and his 2019 memoir Compton Street Legend. Prosecutors argued that those accounts contained details showing Davis was not simply an eyewitness but one of the men who organized the attack.
His defense insisted Davis had exaggerated or invented his role to sell books and profit from his notoriety. Attorneys pointed to inconsistencies across his different accounts and the absence of physical evidence directly connecting him to the shooting.
The jury rejected that argument.
The verdict brought emotional scenes inside the courtroom. Shakur’s sister, Sekyiwa “Set” Shakur, cried and embraced prosecutors after Davis was convicted, while Davis’ son covered his face with his hand.
Nearly 30 years after gunfire cut short the life of one of hip-hop’s most influential artists, the murder of Tupac Shakur finally has its first conviction.
