Judge allows use of police interview in Tupac Shakur murder trial : NPR

LAS VEGAS — On Tuesday, a Nevada judge decided that the 2008 police interview with the man accused of killing Tupac Shakur can be used in his upcoming trial.

Judge Carli Kierny ruled that the interview is permissible in Duane “Keffe D” Davis’ trial, set to commence on August 10. Davis, aged 63, faces murder charges for Shakur’s 1996 killing and could receive a life sentence without parole if found guilty. Prosecutors assert that Davis orchestrated the murder.

Tupac Shakur’s murder is one of the most infamous unsolved cases in the U.S. The investigation remained inactive until Davis began publicly discussing it, including in a book he co-authored, where he claimed to have been in the Cadillac and to have provided the gun used in the shooting.

Defense lawyer Michael Sanft contended that the 2008 interview with Davis was intended to be confidential, with detectives assuring him it would not be used against him. “I sang because they promised I would not be prosecuted,” Davis stated in his book “Compton Street Legend.”

Prosecutors argued there is no reason to exclude the interview from the trial, which is anticipated to last about four weeks. They claim the interview became admissible once Davis decided to publish his book and speak out publicly about the events.

Davis’ attorney unsuccessfully sought to prevent the book’s use in the trial, arguing it was fictionalized for profit and ambiguous in authorship. Judge Kierny ruled that Davis had adopted the book as his own, referencing an interview where he called it the “real truth.”

The 2008 interview was featured in former LAPD Detective Greg Kading’s book “Murder Rap: The Untold Story of the Biggie Smalls & Tupac Shakur Murder Investigations.” Portions have also appeared in documentaries, including “Sean Combs: The Reckoning.”

Shakur was fatally shot on September 7, 1996, in Las Vegas while sitting with Death Row Records founder Marion “Suge” Knight at a red light. A white Cadillac pulled up beside them, and gunfire erupted. Shakur was hit multiple times and succumbed six days later, while Knight sustained minor injuries.

Three others were in the Cadillac with Davis, including his nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson, but Davis is the only surviving member. None of them were charged in connection with Shakur’s death before passing away.

In his memoir, Davis recounted obtaining a gun from an associate and tossing it into the back seat of the Cadillac but did not reveal who fired the lethal shots.

In the 2008 interview, Davis detailed how his crew spotted Shakur that night, approached him, and claimed Anderson “popped them.” Anderson had denied involvement in Shakur’s murder and died two years later in an unrelated gang shooting in Compton, California.

A witness testified before the grand jury that Anderson lacked a “clear shot,” prompting Deandrae “Freaky” Smith to take the gun and fire.

Davis wrote in his book about the investigators’ apparent shock and surprise when he began disclosing details of Tupac’s death. He later expressed regret over speaking to them, stating, “It kills me on the inside to know that I told them anything.”