A lawyer for a former Los Angeles-area gang leader accused of orchestrating the 1996 murder of hip-hop music legend Tupac Shakur says prosecutors got it wrong and that he was hired instead of a witness. They said people were at risk and argued that he should be released from prison and placed under house arrest. Ahead of the June trial.
In a court filing Monday ahead of Tuesday's bail hearing, Duane “Kev D” Davis' public defender said prosecutors misinterpreted jail phone recordings and a list of names provided to Davis' family and that the trial He accused officials of falsely reporting Davis' claims. If he is released, he will be a threat to the people.
Special Assistant Public Defenders Robert Arroyo and Charles Cano said in a seven-page filing that Davis “at no time threatened anyone during a telephone call.” “Furthermore, (the prosecution's) interpretation of the use of 'green light' is completely wrong.”
Former gang leader accused of Tupac Shakur's murder seeks home arrest before trial
The reference to a “green light” comes from an October jail phone call transcript that prosecutors Mark DiGiacomo and Binu Paral provided to Clark County District Court Judge Carly Kielny last month.
“Duane's son says he has heard that Duane's family has been given the go-ahead,” the attorneys wrote, using Davis' first name. “Duane clearly had no idea what his son was saying.”
Mr. Arroyo and Mr. Cano declined to comment on the application Monday.
Duane “Keef D” Davis (right), the suspect in the death of rapper Tupac Shakur, meets with his attorney Ross Goodman in a Las Vegas courtroom on October 19, 2023. (Photo by JOHN LOCHER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
The court filing does not say that Davis instructed anyone to harm anyone or that anyone involved was physically harmed. But prosecutors added, “In (Davis') world, a 'green light' is permission to kill.”
Davis' lawyers also asked Carney on Monday, using Davis' first name, to consider what they called “plain questions.”
“If Duane is so dangerous and the evidence is so overwhelming, why did[police and prosecutors]wait 15 years to arrest Duane for the murder of Tupac Shakur?” they wrote.
Prosecutors point to police interviews, a revealing 2019 memoir, and Davis' own statements in the media since 2008 that they argue provide strong evidence that Davis orchestrated the September 1996 shooting.
Davis' lawyers have argued that Davis' depiction of Shakur's murder was “done for entertainment purposes and to make money.”
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Davis, from Compton, California, is the only surviving person in the car fired in the drive-by shooting that also injured rap music mogul Marion “Suge” Knight. Knight is currently serving 28 years in a California prison for an unrelated shooting in the Los Angeles area in 2015.
Davis' attorney pointed out Monday that Knight was a witness to the Shakur shooting but did not testify before the grand jury that indicted Davis before he was arrested in front of Henderson's home on Sept. 29. Las Vegas police had executed a search warrant for the home in mid-July.
Davis has pleaded not guilty and remains jailed without bail at the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas, where detainee phone calls are routinely recorded. If convicted at his trial, he could spend the rest of his life in prison.
Arroyo and Cano argued that their 60-year-old client is in remission after a battle with cancer, is in poor health and will not try to flee to avoid trial. They are asking Carney to set his bail at less than $100,000.
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Davis was involved in the FBI and Los Angeles investigation into the 2008 murders of Shakur in Las Vegas and rival rapper Christopher Wallace, known as The Notorious B.I.G. or Biggie Smalls, in Los Angeles six months later. He claims to have been granted immunity from prosecution by the police's special investigation unit.
Mr. DiGiacomo and Mr. Parral said immunity agreements have limitations. Last week, they submitted to the court an audio recording of a Dec. 18, 2008, special committee interview in which Davis “specifically stated that nothing said in the room would be used against him.” But if (if) he were to talk to other people, that could put him at risk.”
Davis' attorney responded Monday by noting that a book was published 12 years ago by former Los Angeles Police Department detective Greg Kading, who was present during those interrogations.
“Duane is not concerned because his alleged involvement in Shakur's death…has been public knowledge since 2011,” the lawyers said.
