LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – A man charged in the 1996 Las Vegas murder of Tupac Shakur has filed a motion to be released on his own recognizance before the murder trial or, alternatively, for the court to set a “reasonable” bail amount.
Duane “Keffe D” Davis filed the motion in Clark County District Court on December 14. Judge Carli Kearney scheduled a hearing on the matter for January 2, 2024.
According to court documents, if Davis is not released, his attorneys requested a bail amount no higher than $100,000.
“He is not a threat to the community,” the filing noted. “Additionally, he is not a flight risk.”
The motion added that the court could impose electronic monitoring of Davis as a condition of release if it “has any concerns regarding the safety of the community or whether Duane will return for his required court appearances.”
The motion was signed by Robert Arroyo, Chief Deputy Special Public Defender. It went on to provide a history of the case in which Davis was charged with murder with the use of a deadly weapon with the intent to promote, further, or assist a criminal gang in connection with Shakur’s shooting on September 7, 1996. Davis was arrested and taken into custody on September 29 of this year after what District Attorney Steve Wolfson called “the indictment we’ve been waiting almost three decades for.”
Sheriff Kevin McMahill said that the investigation picked up steam in 2018 due to some of Davis’ own admissions. The Sheriff noted that there is no statute of limitations for murder, and said that the suspect’s admissions led to the search warrant that was executed at a Henderson residence earlier this year.
The defense’s December 14 motion acknowledged that the prosecution is alleging that Davis “orchestrated the shooting and provided the weapon used to kill Shakur in retaliation for Shakur and members of his entourage attacking Duane’s nephew Orlando Anderson at the MGM Grand Casino.” The filing stated the the state presented “an astounding amount of hearsay and speculative testimony.”
It continued by alleging that the prosecution called witnesses “with questionable credibility” as it detailed the “alleged animosity” between multiple southern California gangs involved in the dispute.
“The state did not introduce any independent evidence connecting Duane Davis to the shooting,” the motion said. “Instead, it relied on excerpts from a book titled Compton Street Legend, which was allegedly written by Duane Davis and Yusuf Jah.”
Duane Davis, motion for release on his own recognizance or, in the alternative, to set a reasonable bail, December 14
It continued by stating that, according to that book, “Duane did not plan to kill Shakur and Knight in retaliation for the fight,” claiming that Davis had a gun in case his “diplomatic approach to resolving the situation didn’t work.”
The defense motion continued by stating that Davis was coerced into admitting his involvement in the murder during a “secret recording” related to an alleged federal drug case that the government was building against the defendant in 2008.
The defense also brought into question the accuracy of the book that Davis co-authored, noting that the other writer did not testify at grand jury proceedings to delineate which parts of the book were “Duane’s words.”
“It is obvious that parts of the book are fiction and dramatized to make the book more marketable,” the defense stated. “The book and video interviews were produced for a financial benefit under the belief that Duane had immunity.”
“Shakur was shot in self-defense after he reached for a weapon. Nowhere in the book is it alleged Duane ordered anyone to shoot Shakur and Knight.”
Duane Davis, motion for release on his own recognizance or, in the alternative, to set a reasonable bail, December 14
The filing concluded by mentioning that the suspect has “substantial ties to the community” after living in Henderson for 10 years, adding that he is married and has four children. It also said that Davis is “well regarded in his neighborhood,” saying that neighbors knew nothing of his past “because he had moved on from his old lifestyle.”
The motion added that the court should release Davis on house arrest with electronic monitoring pending trial. Davis is due back in court on January 2, 2024.
Copyright 2023 KVVU. All rights reserved.
