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Duane “Keefe D.” Davis, the last living suspect in connection to the 1996 murder of Tupac Shakur, has entered a not-guilty plea. As The Shade Room previously reported, Keefe D. was arrested on Friday, September 29.
According to TMZ, 60-year-old Keefe D. appeared in a Clark County courtroom in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Thursday, November 2. Fox 35 Orlando reports that Keefe D. “stood in shackles” as he waved to his wife, son, and daughter in the room’s gallery.
Clark County District Court Judge Tierra Jones then asked Keefe D. to enter a plea to his murder charge. The 60-year-old reportedly replied, “Not guilty.”
From there, Fox 35 Orlando reports that Judge Jones informed Keefe D. that the court is not seeking the death penalty against him. The outlet adds that this decision may “put Davis in prison for the rest of his life if he is convicted.”
Additionally, Keefe D. was informed that he had been appointed two public defenders. They are reportedly named Robert Arroyo and Charles Cano and will represent Keefe D. at “taxpayer expense.” Furthermore, this motion arrives after the suspect reportedly lost his bid to private defense attorney Ross Goodman.
According to Fox 35 Orlando, Goodman previously expressed to reporters that prosecutors lack evidence and witnesses “including a gun or vehicle” for their charges against the murder suspect.
The outlet adds that the 60-year-old is scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday, November 7, for the scheduling of his trial.
As The Shade Room previously reported, Tupac Shakur was injured in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas, Nevada. The shooting took place on September 7, 1996. However, the rapper later passed away on September 13, 1996.
The murder investigation into the late rapper’s homicide remained cold until July. At the time, Las Vegas authorities searched a home with an alleged connection to Keefe D. and the late rapper’s murder, per The Shade Room.
Later that month, forensic experts reportedly tested bullet cartridges found inside the home.
Then, in September, the 60-year-old was taken into custody by authorities and charged with one count of murder. As The Shade Room previously reported, prior to his arrest, the man publicly admitted to being in the car that riddled Shakur with gunshots. Additionally, the 60-year-old also detailed his involvement in the crime, publicly alleging he provided the weapon used in the fatal shooting.
“It’s those events that have given Las Vegas the ammunition and the leverage to move forward,” a retired Los Angeles detective named Greg Kading reportedly explained, per The Shade Room. “Prior to Keefe D’s public declarations, the cases were unprosecutable as they stood. He put himself squarely in the middle of the conspiracy. He had acquired the gun, he has given the gun to the shooter, and he has been present in the vehicle when they hunted down and located both Tupac and Suge (Knight).”
Since Keefe D.’s arrest, figures close to Tupac have shared their reactions to the murder case’s developments. This includes the former CEO of Death Row Records, Suge Knight, Shakur’s sister, Sekyiwa, and his close friend Jada Pinkett Smith.
