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LAS VEGAS – A Nevada judge has ruled that a 2008 recorded interview with Duane “Keffe D” Davis, the man charged with the murder of rapper Tupac Shakur, can be admitted as evidence in his upcoming trial.
Judge Carli Kierny made the decision on Tuesday, allowing the prosecution to use the interview during the trial set to begin on August 10. Davis, 63, faces murder charges in connection with Shakur’s 1996 fatal shooting.
Tupac Shakur’s death remains one of the most infamous unsolved cases in the United States. The investigation had gone cold for years until Davis began publicly discussing the case, including in a book he co-authored where he claimed he was in the vehicle involved and provided the weapon used in the shooting.
Defense attorney Michael Sanft argued that the 2008 interview was conducted under the understanding it would remain confidential and not be used against Davis. However, prosecutors maintained there was no legal reason to exclude the recording from the trial proceedings, which are expected to last approximately four weeks.
The interview has previously been featured in former LAPD Detective Greg Kading’s book “Murder Rap: The Untold Story of the Biggie Smalls & Tupac Shakur Murder Investigations,” and excerpts have appeared in documentaries such as “Sean Combs: The Reckoning.”
Shakur was shot on September 7, 1996, in Las Vegas while stopped at a red light alongside Death Row Records co-founder Marion “Suge” Knight. A white Cadillac pulled up beside them near the Las Vegas Strip, and gunfire erupted. Shakur was struck multiple times and died six days later, while Knight survived with minor injuries.