Tupac Shakur Murder Case Heads to Jury as Closing Arguments Begin

The long-running murder case over the 1996 killing of hip-hop icon Tupac Shakur is nearing its conclusion. Closing arguments are set to begin Monday in the trial of Duane 'Keffe D' Davis, the only person ever charged in the case.

Davis, 63, has pleaded not guilty to murder with a deadly weapon with the intent to promote, further or assist a criminal gang. If convicted, he could face life in prison.

The trial has featured nine days of testimony, with prosecutors calling 24 witnesses. Davis did not take the stand in his own defense. His lawyers have argued that his past statements about the shooting were made for money and attention, and that investigators could not independently verify key parts of his story.

The final defense witness was retired Las Vegas homicide detective Dan Long. He testified that he tried to verify details Davis gave during a 2009 police interview but could not find records supporting some claims. For instance, Davis said his nephew, Orlando 'Baby Lane' Anderson, went to a hospital after a casino fight with Shakur hours before the shooting. Long said he found no hospital records of Anderson being treated. He also could not find rental records for a white Cadillac Davis said was used in the attack.

When a juror asked if Long could independently confirm Davis was in the Cadillac that night, Long said Davis himself told him he was in the car and that shots came from it. Under cross-examination, Long agreed he had no independent evidence of Davis's presence. However, prosecutors noted that Davis named the same four people investigators already believed were in the Cadillac.

Long also said that after interviewing Davis in 2009, he returned to Las Vegas intending to seek a murder arrest warrant, believing there was probable cause, but prosecutors asked him to wait.

Shakur was shot on September 7, 1996, while riding in a BMW with Marion 'Suge' Knight near the Las Vegas Strip. A white Cadillac pulled alongside at a red light and fired shots. Shakur died six days later. Knight survived.

Years later, Davis said he obtained the gun used in the attack and that Anderson, who has since died, fired the shots. Prosecutors allege Davis planned the killing in retaliation for the casino fight involving Anderson. The case went unsolved for decades until Davis's public interviews and 2019 memoir brought renewed attention. Prosecutors have used his interviews, memoir, and recorded jail calls as evidence.

The jury is expected to begin deliberations after closing arguments.