Tupac Trial Faces 'Snitches Get Stitches' Witness Problem.

Some of Tupac Shakur's family left the courtroom Tuesday before autopsy photos were displayed at the Las Vegas murder trial of Duane 'Keffe D' Davis. Davis is charged with orchestrating the September 1996 drive-by shooting that killed the rapper.

• 6 days after the shooting, Shakur died in a Las Vegas hospital.
• A primary bullet entered near his armpit and collapsed a lung, Dr. Lisa Gavin testified.
• Davis faces life in prison on one count of murder with a deadly weapon.
• MGM Grand surveillance video showed Shakur's group beating Davis' nephew hours earlier.

Why it matters: The prosecution's theory rests largely on Davis's own words. In a 2008 interview with federal investigators, Davis described handing a gun to men in the back seat of the white Cadillac. A 2009 Las Vegas police interview and his 2019 memoir 'Compton Street Legend' contain similar accounts, prosecutors said.

• Nevada law allows a murder charge against someone who did not fire the weapon but participated in the crime.
• A retired Las Vegas officer testified Shakur said only 'no, we'll take care of it' when asked who shot him.

How 28 sources split on this story

Where they split: The core dispute is whether Davis's recorded statements and memoir prove criminal planning or are, as defense attorney Michael Sanft argues, uncorroborated accounts that law enforcement never treated as credible.

What’s next: The trial is expected to run up to six weeks, with more witnesses still to testify.

• Defense attorney Sanft argues 30 years of elapsed time will undermine witness recall.
• Will any witness provide independent corroboration of Davis's role beyond his own statements?
• How will jurors weigh decade-old recorded admissions against the defense claim that investigators knew Davis was unreliable?