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In a case that has gripped the nation for decades, Duane Davis, a former gang leader implicated in the 1996 murder of rap legend Tupac Shakur, is now fighting to have all charges against him dismissed, as The New York Post reported.

Davis, who was arrested in September 2023 near Las Vegas, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder. His attorney, Carl Arnold, filed a motion on Monday in Nevada’s District Court, alleging “egregious” constitutional violations and a lack of evidence to justify prosecution.

Feb 28, 1996; Los Angeles, CA, USA ; FILE PHOTO; Music entertainer Tupac Shakur presents an award at the 38th Annual Grammy Awards at the Shrine Auditorium. Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Network.

Arnold’s filing argues that the 27-year delay in bringing charges has irreparably harmed Davis’ ability to mount a defense. “The prosecution has failed to justify a decades-long delay that has irreversibly prejudiced my client,” Arnold declared in a statement.

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He also criticized the government for allegedly reneging on immunity agreements granted to Davis by federal and local authorities. “Moreover, the failure to honor immunity agreements undermines the criminal justice system’s integrity and seriously questions this prosecution,” Arnold added.

Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson, who has previously called the evidence against Davis “strong,” did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Wolfson has maintained that Davis’ own accounts, including those detailed in a 2019 memoir, are central to the case and that it will be up to a jury to determine their credibility.

June 3, 2003; Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA; Tupac Shakur photographed in 2003. Mandatory Credit: Michael Ferguson/Globe Photos/ZUMA Wire via USA TODAY NETWORK

Davis is accused of orchestrating the drive-by shooting that killed Tupac Shakur and injured rap mogul Marion “Suge” Knight after a heated altercation at a Las Vegas Strip casino.

Authorities allege the attack stemmed from rivalries between East Coast Bloods and West Coast Crips gang members vying for dominance in the gangsta rap scene. Davis’ nephew, Orlando “Baby Lane” Anderson, is said to have been involved in the altercation that precipitated the shooting.

In his 2019 memoir, Davis detailed his life as a leader in a Compton Crips gang and admitted to obtaining a .40-caliber handgun, which he handed to Anderson. While Davis didn’t name Anderson as the shooter, law enforcement and witnesses claim shots were fired from the back seat of a car where Anderson was seated.

Notably, police have neither recovered the gun nor the vehicle used in the shooting.

Tupac Shakur, a cultural icon whose influence spanned music, film, and activism, died a week after the attack at the age of 25. Knight survived the shooting but is currently serving a 28-year prison sentence for an unrelated 2015 murder.

Complicating the case further, Anderson was killed in a 1998 Compton shooting, and the other two individuals in the car with Davis are also deceased. This leaves Davis as the sole living link to a crime that has remained unsolved for nearly three decades.

While Davis continues to deny orchestrating the killing, his legal team insists that the long delay in prosecution and lack of physical evidence make the case against him untenable.

Whether the motion to dismiss will succeed remains to be seen, but the case underscores ongoing challenges in seeking justice for one of hip-hop’s most tragic losses.


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