Almost three decades after the murder of Tupac Shakur, it seems like the case was finally going to be solved following the arrest of Duane “Keefe D” Davis earlier this year. However, Davis’s lawyers have filed a motion for him to be released on bail before trial, stating that his claims of his involvement with Tupac’s murder were “entertainment” and not factual.
Appearing before Clark County District Court Judge Carli Kierny, Davis’s lawyers requested that he be transferred to house arrest or at least be given “reasonable” bail, which his legal representatives suggest is no more than $100,000. His legal team argues that the 60-year-old suspect’s health has suffered in jail and that he has not been provided adequate medical treatment following a bout with colon cancer that they said is in remission as well as ongoing heart problems.
The basis for their claim is that the court’s decision to deny Davis bail was based largely in an “astounding amount of hearsay and speculative testimony.” In a statement to KTNV, his lawyers stated that much of the judgement “relied on excerpts from a book titled Compton Street Legend, which was allegedly written by Duane Davis and Yusuf Jah. The State did not delineate which parts of the book, if any, were written by Duane.” They also pointed out that most of the claims in the book were not independently fact-checked or verified, stating that the book and subsequent interviews were done “for entertainment purposes” only.
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The judge granted the defense a January 2 hearing date to discuss terms of Davis’s bail and possible release. Davis is the only surviving suspect of those believed to be involved with Tupac’s murder. If found guilty, he could face up to life in prison, but prosecutors say that they will not seek the death penalty. Davis has entered an initial plea of not guilty. The trial is expected to begin this summer.
