Attorney: B.I.G. suit witnesses fear payback

By Ryan Pearson
Associated Press Writer
Originally published June 21, 2005
LOS ANGELES -- An attorney representing the family of slain rap superstar Notorious B.I.G. says he is confident he will prevail in the courtroom despite witnesses who are reluctant to testify for fear of retaliation and other challenges.

Attorney Perry Sanders Jr. said Monday the family's lawsuit against the city is "a difficult circumstantial case." Jury selection in the federal case is set to begin Tuesday.

The lawsuit accuses the Los Angeles Police Department of covering up a former officer's alleged involvement in the New York rapper's March 1997 murder. The officer, David Mack, was never accused by prosecutors and has been dropped from the suit.

The suit also alleges the LAPD looked the other way as its officers associated with gang members while moonlighting as guards for B.I.G.'s record label and rival Death Row Records.

At a downtown news conference,Sanders said the dismissal of alleged conspirators didn't weaken the family's civil rights claim.

"This case is now focused solely on the LAPD," he said. "They are the people charged with preventing and solving homicides such as this, even if it means looking at some of their own dirty laundry."

Sanders was flanked by the rapper's mother Voletta Wallace and widow, R&B singer Faith Evans. When asked about the case, Wallace said Sanders spoke for her. Evans, wearing a black pantsuit, black hat and sunglasses, didn't speak.

The attorney argued that recent interviews in which key witnesses have backed away from past statements were prompted by anxious fear that "whoever did this is going to come after them."

"All of a sudden, people get amnesia," he said. "Amnesia is a funny thing. It can't be cured in the courtroom."

On Monday, the Los Angeles Times published an interview with Kevin Hackie, who in previous police interviews and in a deposition for the trial linked Mack with Death Row leader Marion "Suge" Knight. According to the theory driving the Wallace suit, Mack arranged for the rapper's murder at Knight's behest.
Hackie, who provided security for Death Row, told the newspaper he couldn't remember everything he had said due to stress and medication he was taking.

"My memory is bad," he was quoted as saying. "I'm going to answer questions to the best of my knowledge, what I remember. But this whole thing has put me over the edge. I am so stressed. I probably won't even remember our conversation tomorrow."


I hope they soolve at least ONE of these two murders...they need to call them fellas from CSI or Cold Case...they solve evry damn thing
[Edited 6/22/05 4:44am]

I think he had Tupac killed.

Suge DEFINATELY had Tupac and Biggie murdered. There's different witnesses that have admitted this then changed thier stories.

Suge is far from the problem. People should come to the realization that is more that conincidence that 2 rappers are killled and their can't be found. This sounds more like a conspiracy against rap if anything else, The civil lawsuit is frivolous b/c the conspiracy stims deeper than the police department and thats all I have to say for now.
[Edited 6/22/05 12:54pm]

Hotlegs said:

If you know more about this, why don't you enlighten us?

I wouldn't put it past that asshole Suge. He's a thug all the way.

I wouldnt be surprised if Big Suge had biggie killed, but he DEFINATLY DID NOT have tupac killed.I saw the doc as well and the tupac part is pure fiction. He was in the same car as Pac' when pac was murdered, and pac was his best friend.

If anything he killed Biggie in retaliation for the tupac murder.

lilgish said:

i'm glad that they might be gettin to the bottom of bigs murder..but they also need 2 put some focus back on pacs murder

jacknapier said:

I think he had them both killed. Tupac was all set to leave Death Row and he was pissed off that he'd been ripped off by the label and was going to have it audited. Suge then had Biggie killed too to make it look like a retaliatory killing to take the heat off him. It kind of worked too - he's never been charged for the killing. Check out Nick Broomfield's Biggie & Tupac and read Randall Sullivan's superb "Labyrinth" about the LAPD, the Rampart Scandal and the rapper killings. The case of both is very persuasive.

kisscamille said:

Look if you all want to give Suge all this credit that he's that sophistitcated to orchestrate different murders then go ahead and be that fucking stupid. All I saying is that there is an organization behind him who fund the record companies, smuggles and weapons into the urban commmunities . Suge is nothing more than a fucking pon and some you are some dumb fuckers for thinking that he would have so much power. And thats all I am going to say on the matter. Now go ahead and read between the lines and don't beleive the propagnada the media is feeding you.

Hotlegs said:

Right, so you think Suge Knight is a stooge for some massive crime syndicate which not only runs record companies but also "smuggles weapons into the urban communities". That really sounds a lot like - urm - Death Row to me.


Read Randall Sullivan's "Labyrinth" and see "Biggie & Tupac". Their case is very persuasive.

Tupac bodyguard testifies at B.I.G. trial
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The head of security for Death Row Records threatened to "get" Notorious B.I.G. in retaliation for the killing of Death Row star Tupac Shakur, Shakur's former bodyguard testified Wednesday.
Kevin Hackie took the stand saying he feared for his life as a key witness in the federal wrongful death trial. The lawsuit filed by B.I.G.'s family blames the Los Angeles Police Department and city for the rap star's death.

Hackie, who was an FBI informant while serving as Shakur's personal bodyguard for three years, said his security boss, Reginald Wright, told him before B.I.G. was killed, "We were going to get those (people) who downed 'Pac — Biggie and his crew."

California rapper Shakur was gunned down on the Las Vegas Strip six months before his New York rival B.I.G. was shot to death in Los Angeles. The slayings have long been linked in hip-hop lore and news media accounts, though never in court.

Hackie's testimony was unable to definitively connect Death Row to a former rogue Los Angeles police officer at the heart of the case.

Hackie initially said he saw the former officer, David Mack, at numerous Death Row events, sometimes speaking with the record label's leader, Marion "Suge" Knight. But he acknowledged under cross-examination that he only saw Mack with Knight and associates at several large parties or "social functions," including a prizefight in Las Vegas and an MTV shoot in Malibu.

Testimony in the case began slowly Wednesday as attorneys for B.I.G.'s family tried to tie Mack to both Death Row and to the Mob Piru Blood street gang.

According to the theory underlying the suit, Mack arranged to have a college roommate driving Mack's car shoot B.I.G. at Knight's behest. Both Mack and the alleged shooter, Amir Muhammad, have been dropped from the family's suit and have never been named as criminal suspects.

B.I.G., born Christopher Wallace, was gunned down shortly after midnight on March 9, 1997, while leaving an awards show after-party. FBI and LAPD investigations have foundered, which a gang expert testified Wednesday was not unusual in gang killings.

The Compton gang expert, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Detective Timothy Brennan, said he knew nearly every gang member in Compton, adding Mack was not one of them. Brennan said he has worked in Compton and met with its gang members since 1982.

Former Los Angeles Police Chief Bernard Parks, now a city councilman, was the first witness to testify, but said he didn't have any detailed knowledge of the investigation into Wallace's killing.

When Hackie took the stand, he explained that he didn't want to be in court because "this is all going to be on the 6 o'clock news" and he feared "retribution by the Bloods, the Los Angeles Police Department and associates of Death Row Records." U.S. District Judge Florence-Marie Cooper had issued an arrest warrant to compel testimony from Hackie, who now runs a private security firm.

Hackie told a Los Angeles Times reporter last week that he took medication that affected his memory, but on the stand Wednesday he denied any memory problems.

He did acknowledge he had hoped to back out of testifying after learning he would be the "quote-unquote key witness." The family's attorneys have said several witnesses are refusing to appear because they're afraid of retaliation.

Hackie also denied saying some things attributed to him in a June 2004 declaration prepared by plaintiffs' attorneys, including an assertion that "It was well known that David Mack was a covert agent for Death Row Records."

He also criticized the lawsuit's motives.

"You have no weapon, you don't have a direct link to an actual suspect," Hackie said, "so obviously this time it would be for monetary purposes."


-----

Shapeshifter said:

Personally, I don't think Suge Knight is shit. What I am saying is that there is a massive crime syndicate which is bigger than your small time Puff Daddy's and Suge Knights that run this motherfucker. Watch the movie Panther and read about the Black Panthers and Payolla in the record buisiness you'll understand.
[Edited 6/23/05 7:28am]

Hotlegs said:

What I am saying is that if you actually studied the shootings of Biggie and Tupac, it might go some way to undoing your opinion that their murder was some sort of vast government/mob anti-hip-hop conspiracy, or whatever it is you're driving at.

Suge is a gangster pure and simple. His biggest asset was threatening to leave and have his company audited, so he had him killed. Simple as that. It was all about greed and power.

There is no mob/government conspiracy in their murders.

As much as I love Pac, he got himself involved in some real gangsta shit (and he wasnt even a gangsta to begin with) while trying to show his loyalty to Suge. That night in Vegas after the Tyson fight, Pac beat up a Southside Crip named Orlando Anderson, who weeks before that robbed some DeathRow affiliates who were Bloods. After Pac died, a war between Bloods and Crips popped off in LA. Orlando was murdered in 1998 from some unrelated shit though.

And Biggie's murder was, of course, revenege. And as much as I love Biggie, he was talkin greasy on the radio when he was out there on West. Yeah Biggie showed sympathy for Pac but at the sametime he freestyled some the lines from "Long Kiss Goodnight" (which many people believe is a diss record towards Pac recorded after he died) and when asked if he was involved in Pac's death, Biggie responded by sayin he wasn't "that powerful yet." Thats the wrong shit to say in the wrong place at the wrong time (six months after Pac died on Pac's resident coast, knowing people are still heated and mourning). Corrupt LAPD officers (who worked did security for DeathRow when off-duty) were involved in Biggie's killing. One of them is David Mack, who took a three day vacation from work right up to Biggie's murder. And one of the witness claim to have seen him at that industry party Biggie was at that night. The Nation of Islam was doing security at the party and somebody (Ahmir) wearing a suit and bow tied was the shooter (witness claim to have seen him at the party, too). But of course, Mack denies knowing Ahmir and Ahmir naturally denies being the shooter.

It really all just falls into place, but nobody's being charged.

OnionJuice said:

Bullshit. Who the hell do you think funds the damn Crips and the Bloods? Get a fucking clue and stop being so damn naive and feeding into the propaganda that the media and society feeds you.

"Don't Believe The Hype."

Hotlegs said:

Case In Point:

Death Row Records was funded by mafia money!

Hotlegs said:

I seen that movie before!!!
[Edited 6/24/05 15:30pm]

TonyVanDam said:

Preach Tony!

BTW, some reasons people say Suge was probably set up and killed Pac was cause:

1) Pac had plans to leave DeathRow after having them audited. Pac had no owner ship or authority at DeathRow, but yet he fired David Kenner (DeathRow's attorney). Pac signed a three-album deal; All Eyez On Me (being a double album) counted as two and Makaveli was already completed - three albums. Suge made Pac promises that Suge never made good on, so to keep Pac happy, Suge would buy Pac a car, jewerly, etc. etc. but never really gave Pac the money he was supposed to get. EVerything Pac owned was in Suge's name. The generated from All Eyez On Me was WAY more than enough to be down payment to pay Suge back the money for bailing Pac out. In fact, when PAc got locked up, his friends, his family and Interscope all chipped in to bail Pac out of jail; Interscope chipped in the most - Suge paid the remaing small portion to get Pac out.

2) remember one of Suge's homies pointed Orlando out to Pac that night - when Orlando was questioned by police, his reason for being in Vegas that night varied a few times. At first he claimed he was there for the fight, but he didnt have any tickets - right before Pac approached him, he was standing the lobby of MGM AFTER the fight was over. Pac's bodyguard said that Orlando appeared to be "waiting." Hmmm.....

3) The shooting. Most of the time, (9 out of ten) when assailants pull up next to another car and being firing, the victim is usually shot in the head (even Biggie was), but Pac wasnt. Leaving many to believe that the assilants aimed low, shooting their the door (look that bullets holes in the car door) instead of shooting across through the car. And get this: Pac was hit in his chest, lung, leg and finger. Hmmm... And Suge claimed he was tryna shield Pac as Pac was tryna get into the back seat - either that are tryna use Pac as a shield or hold him down. According to the doctor's report (or hospital documents), Suge wasnt grazed by a bullet; yeah he had a sharpnel lunged in his head, but it wasnt a bullet - it was probably flying glass. If Suge is as smart as people say he is then he had the the greatest alibi in the world - "he couldn't have had Pac killed if he was sitting right now to him."
[Edited 6/24/05 15:47pm]

Hotlegs said:

Hotlegs said:

Hotti, Bloods and Crips make their money from committing crimes (selling drugs, guns, mercenary endaveors, etc.). Common sense.

But in this situation (Pac's murder), their is no involvement of the mob or the government. Pac's death was a result of black on black crime that plagues the black community which is an imagery that makes corporations richer. But anyway, Pac got caught admist a gang rivalry.

But if you wanna talk about the mob being affiliated in anything, lets talk about Eazy-E's death and Jerry Heller.

So no, dont you believe that hype.
[Edited 6/24/05 15:45pm]

TonyVanDam said:

LOL! DeathRow wasnt funded by mafia money. When they first started, they were funded by Harry-O, a (black) big-time Los Angeles druglord. Harry-O used his drug money to started a legit record company called GF (GodFather) Records, which DeathRow was *secretly* under. As DeathRow grew sucessful with the millions of records sold from Dre's Chronic album and Snoop's Doggystyle & Murder Was the Case project, Harry-O got locked up and Suge screwed him over, cut him lose and cheated him out of his money...which is why Harri-O's wife (Lydia Harris, whose now over GF Records) is suing DeathRow for MILLIONS as we speak. DeathRow became an empire selling MILLONS of records and Suge was over 100 million dollars rich - who would need to be funded by a mafia being that rich? At the most, DeathRow had gangstas (mostly Bloods) on their payroll.

Do your research, people.

OnionJuice said:

Hello, David Kenner has a HUGE hand in this too. And he also has very close ties with crime families.

As for Harry-O, interesting! But again, who grows the drugs that black crime loads like Harry-O sells?

You know damn good and well that it's not the hood or the projects!

TonyVanDam said:

Tell'em Tony.

TonyVanDam said:

David Kenner had a hand in starting DeathRow, but ony too a SMALL degree cause it wasnt his money that started DeathRow - it was Harry-O's. Not directly, anyway. When you said the Blood & Crips were funded by the mafia, you werent making any sense until you said where the drugs came from, so okay, you're on point there. And yeah, I know Kenner has mafia ties, but he was DeathRow's attorney - he just used his legal resources to make things happen for them.

But back to the original thing, y'all cant tell me dont believe the hype when Im the one stating the facts - take your own advice. Y'all are steady sayin Pac & Biggie's murders are part of some government/mafia conspiracy shit - but where are y'all's facts. Thats all hype you're buying into. When it all comes down to it, both Pac and Biggie's murders were gang related. BTW, in addition to what I said earlier about Orlando Anderson, he was also at that industry party Biggie was at (coincidence??)- its been rumored that Puffy hired Crips for security.

TonyVanDam said:

OnionJuice said:

OnionJuice said:

Hotlegs said:

OnionJuice said: