A sweeping denial and a fresh accusation now sit at the center of Duane “Keefe D” Davis’ defense in the court of public opinion. The only person ever charged in Tupac Shakur’s killing told 8 News Now that he had “nothing to do with nobody’s murder,” then pointed toward former Death Row Records security chief Reggie Wright Jr. as the man he believes was responsible.
Davis did not provide evidence connecting Wright to the September 1996 shooting. Instead, he accused Wright of lying to investigators and threatening his family during media appearances. He also claimed it was Wright who introduced his name into the case from its earliest stages. When asked who killed Shakur, Davis argued that information gathered by investigators and private investigators points toward Wright.
The allegation is not new to Davis’ defense. He previously accused Wright and his security operation of orchestrating the attack during a 2025 jailhouse interview, an alternate-suspect theory Wright has denied. Wright, a former Compton police officer who handled security for Death Row, testified before the grand jury that indicted Davis. He has maintained that he was working on logistics for Shakur and Marion “Suge” Knight on the night of the shooting and has described Davis’ claims as an attempt to redirect attention from his own statements.
Read More: Suge Knight Among Witnesses Listed In Keefe D's Tupac Murder Trial
The Trial Begins This Month
That history presents a substantial problem for Davis as he prepares for trial. Prosecutors do not accuse him of personally firing the shots that killed Shakur. Their case identifies him as the alleged “shot caller” who helped organize the retaliatory attack and supplied the weapon used by the men inside a white Cadillac. Davis previously placed himself in that vehicle during police interviews and in the 2019 memoir Compton Street Legend, but he now argues that those accounts were fabricated for money or provided under an agreement that protected him from prosecution.
Judge Carli Kierny has ruled that prosecutors may introduce both the memoir and Davis’ 2008 police interview at trial. The defense unsuccessfully argued that the interview was covered by a proffer agreement and that portions of the book were fictionalized. Prosecutors countered that Davis surrendered any protection when he repeated the story publicly and later endorsed the memoir’s account as truthful.
Davis has pleaded not guilty to murder with a deadly weapon with the intent to promote, further or assist a criminal gang. His trial is scheduled to begin August 10, with prosecutors expected to call witnesses including Knight, Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo, and former Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman. If convicted, Davis could face life in prison without the possibility of parole.
