By Jack Queen
Aug 31 (Reuters) - A Las Vegas jury on Monday began deciding whether an ex-gang leader who publicly professed to a role in the drive-by killing of hip-hop legend Tupac Shakur was telling the truth and should be convicted of murder, despite disavowing his tale.
Duane "Keffe D" Davis, 63, is charged in Nevada's Clark County with a single count of murder using a deadly weapon and has pleaded not guilty in the only case brought over Shakur's violent death. He is accused of getting a gun and assembling
a crew to hunt down Shakur and avenge the beating of his nephew at a casino on September 7, 1996.
The 12-person jury began deliberating on Monday afternoon after closing arguments. The verdict must be unanimous.
Binu Palal of the Clark County District Attorney's Office told jurors that under the code of respect in street gangs, Davis could not let the beating of his nephew slide.
"So what did he do? He acquired a firearm, got his group together, and went hunting for Mr. Shakur," Palal said.
Police say they long suspected Davis but did not have enough evidence to charge him until he went public with his story in media appearances and a memoir, which, along with tapes of his secret meetings with investigators, make up most of the prosecution’s case.
'FICTION, NOT FACT'
Davis' lawyer Michael Sanft told jurors during his closing argument that his client's story could not be corroborated by evidence and should not be trusted. He also said the case was tainted by police corruption, mismanagement and missing files.
“You’re reading a book that is fiction and not fact, but the state wants you to believe that this is somehow a confession," Sanft said, referring to Davis' 2019 memoir "Compton Street Legend."
Over the past two weeks, prosecutors played hours of recordings for jurors in which Davis said he was enraged after Shakur and his entourage beat up Davis’ nephew.
Davis and three other men, including his nephew, went looking for Shakur and his record executive Marion “Suge” Knight in a white Cadillac on the night of the beating, he told police during an unrelated investigation. Davis said he passed a gun to the backseat, and when they found Knight and Shakur’s car, one of the two men in the back opened fire.
Prosecutors have not named the shooter, and the three other men in the car have since died. Under Nevada law, Davis can be charged with murder even if he did not pull the trigger.
Davis was a leader of the South Side Compton Crips, a Los Angeles-area street gang that feuded with rival gang Mob Piru, which was associated with Shakur and his record label Death Row Records.
Shakur's 1996 killing became a seminal moment in rap history and heightened hip-hop culture's violent image during “gangsta” rap’s heyday, an era defined by feuding between East and West Coast artists.
Relatives of Shakur are attending the trial and have said they hope it can bring them long-awaited closure.
(Reporting by Jack Queen in New York; Editing by Noeleen Walder, Rod Nickel and Bill Berkrot)
