The Appeal Gets Filed
Duane “Keffe D” Davis isn’t giving up. The 62-year-old man charged with ordering Tupac Shakur’s murder just filed an appeal with the Nevada Supreme Court. He wants the state’s highest court to throw out his murder charges completely.
Davis filed the appeal on Tuesday. This comes after a lower court judge said his case could move forward. Davis is the only person ever charged in the 1996 killing of the famous rapper in Las Vegas.
What Davis Is Arguing
Davis’s lawyer, Carl Arnold, says the government broke its promises. For more than ten years, Davis talked to police and federal agents. Each time, they told him his words wouldn’t be used against him in court.
Arnold said:
“Mr. Davis cooperated with law enforcement over the course of more than a decade, relying on repeated assurances that his statements would not be used against him — yet those very statements now form the core of the State’s case,”
The appeal lays out a timeline. In 1998 and 1999, federal prosecutors interviewed Davis. They promised not to use his statements to prosecute him. Back then, Davis said he didn’t know who killed Tupac.
Ten years later, in 2008 and 2009, investigators came back. Same promise. Same deal. This time, Davis told a different story. He admitted he was involved and even named the shooter.
Now prosecutors want to use those very statements to convict him. Davis says that’s not fair.
The Immunity Question
Arnold argues his client had immunity deals with both federal and local authorities. The problem? Davis can’t produce written proof of these agreements.
The district court judge wasn’t convinced. The judge said Davis hadn’t shown enough evidence that he was protected from prosecution. The judge also said the 27-year delay in charging Davis wasn’t done on purpose to hurt his case.
But Davis’s legal team isn’t backing down. They say prosecutors have no other evidence connecting Davis to the shooting. Just his own words. And those words, they argue, should be off limits.
Why This Case Matters
This isn’t just about one old case. It’s about whether people can trust law enforcement to keep their word. When police make deals with witnesses, those deals should mean something.
Davis has been sitting in the Clark County Detention Center since his arrest in September 2023. His trial is set to start in early February 2026. But first, the Nevada Supreme Court has to decide whether there will be a trial at all.
The Background
Tupac Shakur was just 25 when he was gunned down in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas. It happened after a Mike Tyson boxing match. The case went cold for decades.
Davis wrote about his involvement in a 2019 book called “Compton Street Legend.” He also gave interviews admitting he provided the gun used in the shooting. Other people involved in the conspiracy have since died. That makes Davis the last man standing.
Tupac was one of the most influential rappers of all time. He was nominated for six Grammy Awards. His album “All Eyez on Me” had sold about 5 million copies when he died.
What Happens Next
The Nevada Supreme Court will review Davis’s appeal. They have several options. They could dismiss the charges completely. They could send the case back to the lower court. Or they could let the murder charges stand.
Arnold is asking the high court to either grant their motion to dismiss or recognize that Davis had immunity from prosecution. He argues that using Davis’s own statements against him violates his constitutional rights.
The case has dragged on for nearly three decades. Now it’s up to Nevada’s highest court to decide if it will continue or end here.
This article was written with the assistance of AI. Please verify information and consult additional sources as needed.
