The long-anticipated murder trial of Duane "Keefe D" Davis, the lone person ever charged in connection with the slaying of Tupac Shakur, has been dealt a significant delay. The trial had been scheduled to start in mid-March 2025; it will now be postponed until February 2026, a delay that gives Davis' defense team almost another year to prepare its case.
The defense's request was filed with the Second Court of Appeals in Fort Worth and reported by ABC News on Tuesday (February 18), which also notes that the defense states it needs more time to interview key witnesses who they say can show that Davis is innocent. The judge on the case, Carli Kierny, ultimately concurred, saying, "It looks like there are quite a few things that are left to be done to get this case in order so that Mr. Davis can have effective assistance of counsel."
Under those circumstances, she continued, "I really seem to have very little choice but to grant it."
Prosecutors did not object to the motion, and Davis, who has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder, will stay behind bars pending trial. He has remained in custody since he was arrested in September 2023.
Tupac Shakur was shot five times while riding in the passenger seat of Death Row Records C.E.O. Suge Knight's BMW on September 7, 1996. The assault, which Davis was allegedly involved in planning, was also said to be revenge for a casino fight involving 2Pac, Knight, and Davis' nephew, Orlando Anderson. Anderson, long believed to be the shooter, was killed in a separate shooting in 1998.
Prosecutors say Davis helped orchestrate the hit and was the "shot caller" in the scheme. But his lawyers are vigorously disputing that accusation, presenting fresh arguments to prove his innocence. Defense lawyer Carl Arnold maintains that Davis wasn't even in Las Vegas at the time the shots were allegedly fired and that upcoming witness testimony will prove it.
In a slip of a legal motion filed last Friday (February 14), Arnold indicates that his private investigator has discovered evidence that contradicts the official narrative.
"With each new piece of evidence, it's becoming clearer that basic facts remain unexamined," Arnold asserted. "When the charges were filed, we were already doing more investigations, interviewing key witnesses and making sure Mr. Davis has the fair trial he is entitled to under the Constitution."
The defense's filing also implicates Reggie Wright Jr., the ex-head of security for Death Row Records, and his crew as having killed 2Pac. Wright, who testified before a grand jury in Davis' case, denied involvement. "Good luck finding somebody saying that, that's credible," he told ABC News. "It's upsetting that they continue to pull my name in. I had nothing to do with that. And it was one of the worst days in my life when I heard that that happened."
Leaving aside the deferred murder trial, Davis is not out of legal trouble. He is scheduled to face trial over an unrelated December 2024 ruckus in jail in April. He has pleaded not guilty to charges of battery by a prisoner and challenges to fight.
As more evidence comes to light and witnesses prepare to testify, the legal path forward for Keefe D remains fraught. As the trial date approaches, one question looms large: Will this delay be enough time for his defense to construct a case strong enough to change the course of hip-hop history?
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