Tupac Shakur’s Family Responds to Duane “Keffe D” Davis Guilty Verdict

The family of Tupac Shakur have described feeling “elated and relieved” following the conviction of Duane ‘Keffe D’ Davis for organising the rapper’s killing.

Last week, Davis was found guilty of one count of murder with a deadly weapon over the shooting that took place in Las Vegas on September 7, 1996.

Following the decision, Shakur’s relatives issued a statement expressing their gratitude to the jury for “thoughtfully fulfilling their duty and carefully listening to all the evidence.”

Shared by the rapper’s sister, Sekyiwa “Set” Shakur, the statement began: “Above all, we honour Afeni Shakur — a mother whose strength and unshakable belief in her son’s truth carried this fight long before any of us knew where it would lead.

“The family of Tupac Amaru Shakur is elated and relieved by today’s verdict. We would like to thank the jury for thoughtfully fulfilling their duty and carefully listening to all the evidence.”

The family also wrote: “Our deepest appreciation goes out to our family, friends, loved ones and all of Tupac’s fans, who have always provided their love and support. We also want to extend our deepest gratitude to the marshals and advocates who supported and protected us throughout this process. Your steady presence and care did not go unnoticed, and we are forever grateful.”

They stressed that “this is not the end of the story”, promising to preserve Shakur’s memory and adding that his “legacy and impact on the world lives on and we will continue to do everything we can to keep his spirit alive.”

Davis has maintained his innocence in his first interview following the verdict. He claimed his lawyers had already submitted an appeal and expressed confidence that he would be released.

“Shit, I ain’t worried. I’m getting out on an appeal,” he said from Nevada’s Clark County Detention Center. “We already filed it before the trial even started. They violated my civil rights!”

Davis also alleged that witnesses had misrepresented him during their testimony. He disputed having written the 2019 autobiography Compton Street Legend, which featured among the evidence presented at trial.

He said: “I never wrote that book. The author told me to tell them 10 stories about what happened in your life and get them some pictures. I never read that book or went over that book or nothing. They didn’t even spell my name right on the cover.”

When asked whether he wanted to address Shakur’s relatives, Davis responded: “I ain’t got nothing to say to them. I didn’t like the way they was looking at me – like they was ready to beat me up. And I didn’t like the way the prosecutors kept bringing them in the back room where the jury was. That felt biased to me.”

Neither Shakur’s family nor Yusuf Jah, who coauthored Compton Street Legend, has publicly addressed those remarks.

During the proceedings, prosecutors said Davis, a former South Side Compton Crips leader, arranged the attack despite not firing the fatal shots himself. They argued that he provided the weapon his nephew, Orlando Anderson, used to shoot Shakur.

The prosecution described the shooting as revenge for an altercation at the MGM Grand earlier that evening, when Shakur and people accompanying him beat Anderson.

Anderson belonged to a rival gang based in Compton, California. He died in a separate shootout two years after Shakur’s killing.

Jurors listened to eight hours of recordings drawn from four occasions across different years. In those accounts, Davis repeatedly described the events and publicly acknowledged that he had been travelling in the white Cadillac from which the shots were fired.

Davis had previously discussed his involvement with investigators during a confidential police interview in 2008 concerning the death of The Notorious B.I.G.. His 2019 memoir, Compton Street Legend, offered a more detailed account.

Defence lawyer Michael Sanft argued that Davis invented the stories for financial gain, entertainment and personal benefit. He also said police had not brought charges following the 2008 interview because they doubted Davis’ account or lacked enough supporting evidence.

In one recording presented to the court, Davis placed himself in the front passenger seat of the rented white Cadillac. The vehicle approached the BMW carrying Shakur and Suge Knight on September 7, 1996.

According to his account, Terrence ‘Bubble Up’ Brown was at the wheel, with Orlando ‘Baby Lane’ Anderson and DeAndre ‘Dre’ Smith seated behind them. Davis said he handed a loaded firearm to the rear passengers because his position prevented him from getting a clear shot.

In the recorded interview, Davis described Smith hesitating before Anderson took hold of the gun. “He rolled down the window, popped ’em,” Davis told investigators.

Davis also said he would have fired the weapon had Knight’s BMW approached his side of the car. He recalled seeing Shakur try to climb into the back seat when the shooting began.

Shakur was travelling from a Mike Tyson boxing match when another vehicle pulled up beside his car and its occupants opened fire. He died six days later from the injuries he sustained.