LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — Duane “Keffe D” Davis, the only suspect charged in the murder of Tupac Shakur, appeared in court Tuesday for the final hearing before his trial is expected to begin next week. The judge indicated Davis could be released on bail before facing a jury, and both sides continued to dispute what statements Davis made to the public can be used at trial.
MORE ON FOX5: Witness list released for Tupac murder trial; Suge Knight expected to testify
Bail remains possible
Defense attorney Michael Sanft said Davis is moving toward making bail and requested the court set a time for him to do so. The state opposed the request, but the judge said a bail release would not affect the proceedings.
“If Mr. Davis were to bail out tomorrow or in the middle of trial, that wouldn’t affect anything from the evidence perspective or how the trial is conducted,” judge Carli Kierny said.
Fight over Davis’s book and media statements
A central dispute heading into trial involves Davis’s 2019 tell-all book about Shakur’s murder and various media interviews Davis gave over the years. The question before the court is whether a 2008 interview Davis gave to the LAPD — under a promise of immunity — shields the public statements he later made.
Prosecutor Binu Palal argued the immunity agreement does not protect Davis’s subsequent public accounts.
“Mr. Sanft, through the course of the trial, will tell the jurors, ‘Hey, look, the 2009 story is a lie when he told it on the BET Chronicles. That was a lie. When he wrote it in the book, that was a lie,’” Palal said. “He is going to celebrate the notion that Mr. Davis broke the contract in 2008, and equity says we can’t say anything about it?”
The judge raised concerns about Davis’s rights, questioning whether the immunity promise effectively silenced him.
“As a point, if the federal government is saying you will never be prosecuted for this, so whatever you tell us remains with us, then it won’t be used in the future — literally that’s what’s said to him — isn’t that extinguishing his rights to remain silent?” the judge said.
Defense attorney Michael Sanft said the issue raises fairness concerns.
“I think there is a fundamental fairness problem here,” Sanft said. “So the court can still make that ruling.”
The judge said she will review the media interviews ahead of trial.
Witness list released
The prosecution this week released an 11-page list of witnesses expected to testify at trial. Among the most prominent names on the list is Marion “Suge” Knight, the former CEO of Death Row Records, who was in the car with Shakur the night of the shooting. Knight is described as the only surviving witness to the shooting other than Davis.
Additional witnesses listed include Shakur’s sister and stepbrother, former Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman, and Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo, who was a Metro sergeant at the time of the murder.
The trial is expected to last at least four weeks.
Copyright 2026 KVVU. All rights reserved.
