August 31, 2026
Duane Davis enters the courtroom before closing arguments in his murder trial, related to the 1996 killing of rapper Tupac Shakur, at Clark County District Court at the Regional Justice Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, on August 31, 2026. The trial of the former gang leader accused of orchestrating the murder of rapper Tupac Shakur began on August 10, 30 years after one of America’s most high-profile unresolved killings. The proceedings, expected to last a month, will likely not make clear who fired the shots that killed the California hip-hop legend on the night of September 7, 1996, while he was in Las Vegas to see a Mike Tyson boxing match. (Photo by STEVE MARCUS / POOL / AFP)
A jury heard closing arguments on Monday in the trial of a former Los Angeles gang leader accused of involvement in the sensational murder three decades ago of chart-topping rapper Tupac Shakur.
Duane “Keffe D” Davis, 63, a one-time leader of the South Side Compton Crips, is accused of ordering the September 7, 1986 killing after his nephew had been beaten by members of Shakur’s entourage in Las Vegas.
“Duane Davis, in the culture of gangs, could not let that stand,” prosecutor Binu Palal said. “So what did he do? He acquired a firearm, got his group together, and went hunting for Mr Shakur.”
