Tupac Shakur killing suspect’s battery trial begins as jury selected
A jury has been selected in the trial that will decide whether the suspect in the fatal shooting of rapper Tupac Shakur is guilty of battery in connection with a jail altercation.
Duane “Keffe D” Davis, 61, was indicted in February on counts of battery by a prisoner and challenging someone to a fight. According to prosecutors, he and another inmate, Rochlon Hamilton, 53, struck each other during a Dec. 23 incident at the Clark County Detention Center.
Normally, a battery case stemming from a confrontation in jail would be low profile. It might not even reach trial.
But the allegations against Davis have attracted attention because prosecutors have said Davis orchestrated the killing of Shakur near the Strip in 1996 as retaliation for a fight involving Shakur and his nephew.
During jury selection Tuesday, District Judge Nadia Krall questioned potential jurors about their knowledge of Davis.
She also instructed the jury not to check the news or social media until after reaching a verdict, although potential jurors did not indicate that they knew of Davis or had heard about his case from news reports.
Under questioning, juror candidates told the court about relatives accused of crimes. They disclosed crimes committed against them, like a robbery at gunpoint and a decades-old assault and car theft. And they talked about their views of the justice system.
One man said he believes people accused of a crime have to prove their innocence. “I come from the old school, where guilty is guilty,” he told Krall.
He was excused.
The panel of jurors was sworn in around 4:15, about five hours after the trial began.
Davis is not expected to testify in the battery case, which may wrap up on Wednesday.
He seemed hesitant to go forward with trial and said he wanted to delay the case before jurors arrived in the courtroom. Krall rejected his request.
Contact Noble Brigham at nbrigham@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BrighamNoble on X.
