{"abstract":"Michael Sanft, attorney for Duane Davis, questions witness during Davis' murder trial, related to the 1996 killing of rapper Tupac Shakur, in Las Vegas, Monday, Aug. 17, 2026","title":"Opening statements begin in long-awaited trial almost 30 years after hip-hop star Tupac Shakur was murdered","sourceHref":"https://www.euronews.com/2026/08/18/opening-statements-begin-in-long-awaited-trial-almost-30-years-after-hip-hop-star-tupac-sh?utm_source=microsoft&utm_campaign=feeds_allthemes_video&utm_medium=referral","renderingRestriction":0,"authors":[],"imageResources":[],"thumbnail":{"image":{"width":1920,"height":1080,"quality":88,"url":"https://img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/AA2alTZ5.img","title":"Opening statements begin in long-awaited trial almost 30 years after hip-hop star Tupac Shakur was murdered Thumbnail","source":"msn","cmsId":"cms/api/amp/image/AA2alTZ5"}},"body":"Opening statements and witness testimonies have begun in a long-awaited trial almost 30 years after hip-hop icon Tupac Shakur was killed in 1996. Dwayne Kifidi Davis, a self-described gangster, is being accused of plotting the fatal murder in a case built against him via his own testimonies, police corroborations, and from a memoir released in 2019. He had reportedly sought to retaliate against Shakur after the artist's entourage attacked his nephew in Las Vegas just hours before the shooting. Dwayne Davis did not pull the trigger. But what he did do was plan the retaliation for the beating of his nephew. Dwayne Davis made sure that the shooters were armed and ready to execute their revenge. And remarkably, You will learn that from Dwayne Davis himself. Davis' defense argued that for almost 30 years until his 2023 indictment, there were no charges in this case due to a lack of evidence, moving to slam the prosecution's claims as fiction. And at the end of all the time we spent together, what you're gonna find is, is that the state cannot prove to you beyond reason without the claim that he was had anything to do with a first degree murder with use of deadly weapon. There's no facts to that matter. Davis's attorney is presenting a defense strategy painting his own client as a liar, essentially withdrawing all previous testimony he made linking himself to Tupac's killing. You're essentially telling the jury that your client is a liar. Yep, I am. Yes, that's true. Tupac Shakur was the victim of a drive-by shooting outside the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas on 7 September 1996, where he sustained critical gunshot wounds before succumbing to his injuries a week later. Davis is the only living member of the four-person entourage believed to have carried out the shooting from a white Cadillac vehicle.","provider":{"id":"AAAzGUO","name":"Euronews","companyLegalName":"Euronews 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portrays Davis as a **liar retracting previous statements**.  \n\n📅 **📰 Case Background**: Tupac was killed in a **drive-by shooting in Las Vegas on September 7, 1996**, and Davis is the only living member of the four-person group believed to have carried out the attack.","key_takeaways_short":"**Tupac Shakur Murder Trial Begins After Nearly 30 Years**  \n\n⚖️ **Trial Overview**: Opening statements and witness testimonies have started in the decades-long case against **Dwayne Kifidi Davis**, accused of orchestrating Tupac Shakur's 1996 murder.  \n\n🕵️ **Alleged Role**: Davis reportedly **planned retaliation** for his nephew's beating but did not fire the shots; prosecution relies on his own statements, police corroboration, and a 2019 memoir.  \n\n💼 **Defense Strategy**: Davis' attorney argues **lack of evidence** for nearly 30 years, portraying Davis as a **liar withdrawing prior testimony**, challenging claims linking him to first-degree 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