A jury has found Duane “Keffe D” Davis, the former Los Angeles-area gang leader, guilty of orchestrating the killing of legendary rapper Tupac Shakur.
Tupac was killed on September 7, 1996, after suffering a gunshot wound from a drive-by shooting. The rapper died six days after being put on life support. He was in Las Vegas for a Mike Tyson heavyweight fight.
Davis, one-time leader of the South Side Compton Crips, was arrested in September 2024. His trial began in August in a Las Vegas court 30 years after the fatal shooting and a week after jury selection.
At the start of the hearing, Davis, who is now 63, pleaded not guilty to a murder charge involving the use of a deadly weapon in connection with gang activity.
Binu Palal, the prosecuting lawyer, argued that Davis had “visceral anger” towards Tupac over the earlier attack on Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson, his nephew, and subsequently obtained a gun and handed it to Anderson, who then shot at Tupac’s vehicle in Las Vegas.
He argued that no one was prosecuted for years because “silence means survival” in the world of gangs, but claimed Davis was the one person who struggled to remain silent.
He cited his interviews and book in which he allegedly discussed his role in the case.
At the resumption of sittings on Monday, the jurors deliberated for about three hours. They found Davis guilty of murder with the use of a deadly weapon with the intent to promote, further or assist a criminal gang.
In their verdict, the twelve jurors agreed that Davis was guilty of orchestrating the murder of the late rapper Tupac.
“Count one, murder with use of a deadly weapon, guilty of first-degree murder with use of a deadly weapon,” the foreperson of the jury announced to the court.
The 63-year-old faces a possible maximum sentence of life in prison.
Davis, who wore a black suit, stood alongside his lawyer as the verdict was read to them. The gang leader later sat down, his fingers clasped together on the table.
Carli Kierny, the judge in Clark county district court, has October 13 set for Davis’ sentencing.
