Nearly 30 years after Tupac Shakur was gunned down in Las Vegas, a jury is set to hear evidence in the long-unsolved killing when Duane "Keffe D" Davis goes on trial next week.
Davis, 63, is charged with orchestrating the Sept. 7, 1996, drive-by shooting that killed Shakur and wounded Death Row Records co-founder Marion "Suge" Knight. He has pleaded not guilty, and his trial is scheduled to begin Aug. 10.
Prosecutors allege the shooting was retaliation after a fight earlier that night at the MGM Grand involving Shakur, Knight and Orlando "Baby Lane" Anderson, Davis' nephew. Authorities say the attack reflected the bitter East Coast-West Coast rap rivalry of the 1990s, as well as gang tensions between Bloods and Crips affiliates.
Here's a look at the key figures at the center of the case.
Tupac Shakur
Shakur was one of hip-hop's biggest stars, with five No. 1 albums, six Grammy nominations and a posthumous induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2017. He also received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2023.
The rapper, born Lesane Parish Crooks in New York in 1971, was riding in the passenger seat of a black BMW driven by Knight when a white Cadillac pulled alongside near the Las Vegas Strip and opened fire. Shakur was struck multiple times and died six days later at age 25.
His family has long criticized authorities for taking nearly three decades to bring criminal charges in the case.
Marion "Suge" Knight
Knight, who founded Death Row Records and signed Shakur to the label, survived the shooting after being grazed by bullet fragments.
Now 61, Knight is serving a 28-year prison sentence in California after pleading no contest to voluntary manslaughter in the 2015 fatal hit-and-run death of Terry Carter.
In his 2019 memoir, Davis described himself and Knight as the only surviving eyewitnesses to the shooting.
Orlando "Baby Lane" Anderson
Authorities have long identified Anderson as the suspected gunman, although he was never charged and repeatedly denied any involvement.
According to prosecutors, Anderson was assaulted by Shakur and members of his entourage during a fight at the MGM Grand just hours before the shooting, providing the alleged motive for the attack.
Davis wrote in his memoir that he handed a gun to the back seat of the Cadillac but did not identify who fired the fatal shots.
Anderson was killed in an unrelated gang shooting in Compton in 1998.
Deandrae "Freaky" Smith
Smith, also known as "Big Dre," was riding in the back seat of the Cadillac beside Anderson.
Although investigators have long believed Anderson fired the shots, grand jury testimony introduced another theory.
Former Davis associate Denvonta Lee testified that Smith confessed to firing the shots after taking the gun from Anderson because Anderson did not have a clear angle.
Lee was not in the Cadillac and testified about what he said Smith later told him.
Smith died of natural causes in 2004, according to the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office.
Terry "Bubble Up" Brown
Brown was allegedly driving the white Cadillac during the shooting.
Davis wrote that the group spotted Shakur's BMW after seeing the rapper leaning out of the window and greeting fans. According to the memoir, Davis told Brown to turn the car around before they pulled alongside the BMW moments before the gunfire.
Brown was killed in a 2015 shooting at a medical marijuana dispensary in Compton.
Investigators have said neither the Cadillac nor the gun used in the shooting has ever been recovered, leaving prosecutors to rely heavily on witness testimony, Davis' own statements and other evidence when the long-awaited trial begins.
