Court Upholds murder charge for Keefe D over the killing of 2Pac Shakur

The only individual ever charged in connection with the 1990s murder of rap icon Tupac Shakur in Las Vegas has failed in his attempt to have the case against him dismissed.

In a bench ruling on Tuesday, Clark County District Court Judge Carli Kierny stated that Duane “Keffe D” Davis is not shielded from prosecution, as he has not provided evidence of the immunity agreements he claims to have made years ago with federal and local authorities while still residing in California.

Davis and his legal representative contended that he should never have faced murder charges due to these alleged agreements. Attorney Carl Arnold also argued that the indictment of his 61-year-old client represents an “egregious” infringement of his constitutional rights, given the 27-year delay in prosecution; however, Kierny noted that she found no proof that the delay was intentional.

Following the court session, Arnold indicated that they would decide in the upcoming days whether to appeal the judge’s ruling to the state Supreme Court.

Davis’ trial in Las Vegas is currently scheduled for March 17, but it could be delayed while he appeals. He has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and remains jailed in Las Vegas.

Prosecutors have stated that the evidence against Davis is compelling, including his own accounts of the 1996 shooting in his revealing memoir. Davis, a former gang leader, is alleged to have orchestrated the shooting near the Las Vegas Strip that resulted in Shakur's death shortly after a confrontation at a casino involving Shakur and Davis’ nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson.

Davis hails from Compton, California. He was apprehended in September 2023 in his neighbourhood near Las Vegas, nearly 30 years after the shooting that has become one of hip-hop’s most persistent enigmas.