by Ran Britt
Orlando Tive Anderson was born in Compton, California to Harvey Lee Anderson and Charlotte Davis on August 13, 1974. After the couple separated, Charlotte moved the family to her mother's home on South Burris Avenue and earned a living as a bookkeeper.
At 11-years-old Anderson befriended future Nutty Blocc Compton Crip Al Hassan "BG Knocc Out" Naqiyy (then known as Arlandis Hinton), who went on to embark on a recording career under the auspices of rapper Eric "Eazy-E" Wright. In his early teens, Anderson became affiliated with the Compton, California-based South Side Crips street gang and garnered the nickname, "Baby Lane", compiling a criminal record that includes arrests for assault and robbery along the way. Anderson served time in juvenile detention with Naqiyy.
Anderson attended Manuel Dominguez High School, which boasts famous alumni such as: rapper Lorenzo "MC Ren" Patterson; NBA players Tyson Chandler, Cedric Ceballos, Jordan Hamilton, Brandon Jennings, Tayshaun Prince, and Hall of Famer Dennis Johnson; NFL star Richard Sherman; and stand-up comic Paul Rodriguez. He transferred to the San Fernando Valley's William Howard Taft Charter High School, rapper/director/actor O'Shea "Ice Cube" Jackson's alma mater, before returning to Taft for his final year of high school. After graduating in 1992, Anderson attended Compton Community College before dropping out. Two years later, his daughter, Krystal, with girlfriend Rasheena Smith, a student nurse, was born. About a year later, their daughter, Courtney, was born. He then worked at a local hydraulic shop until August of 1996.
That same year, his other girlfriend, Taiece Lanier, gave birth to Anderson's third daughter, Ariel.
In April of 1996, Anderson and other South Side Crips reportedly beat and robbed Travon "Tray" Lane, an alleged member of the Mob Piru Bloods street gang, in the Foot Locker at Lakewood, California's Lakewood Center mall. They relieved Lane, who had ties to Los Angeles-based Death Row Records, of a gold chain bearing a charm molded into the shape of the company's logo during the attack.
On September 7, 1996, thousands convened on the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada to witness the heavyweight title fight between boxing legend Mike Tyson and Bruce Seldon. Anderson, who'd checked into the nearby Excalibur Hotel with Rasheena, was in town to watch the bout too.
Following the 1 minute and 49-second fight, actor/rapper Tupac Shakur, Death Row Records CEO Marion "Suge" Knight and other individuals tied to the label were captured on security video assaulting Anderson in the lobby of the MGM Grand Hotel. The assault began after Travon Lane notified Shakur that he'd spotted Anderson near the hotel's elevator bank. After approaching Anderson, Shakur asked, "You from the South?", then punched him in the head. The scuffle, which lasted less than a minute, was broken up by hotel security. Though Las Vegas police suggested that he file a complaint, Anderson declined.
Afterwards, Anderson told his friend, fellow South Side Crip Corey Edwards, who was buying drinks at the bar during the fight, that he wanted a one-on-one rematch. Anderson then reportedly met with at least 12 other Crips members at the Treasure Island Hotel and Casino. The group then drove to Knight's club, 662, and waited in vain for at least an hour for the Death Row contingent to arrive.
At about 11:15 that night, according to witnesses, a 1996 white Cadillac containing four men, pulled alongside Knight's BMW 750 sedan, in which Shakur sat in the passenger seat, which was at a red light on the corner of Flamingo Road and Koval Lane. One of the Cadillac's occupants sitting in the back seat and wearing black gloves then pointed a handgun through the rear driver side window and opened fire. While witnesses reported hearing 12-14 shots, Shakur was struck four times, and Knight was grazed in the head. Knight's BMW actually headed a caravan of vehicles filled with Death Row artists and associates. Immediately following the shooting, the Cadillac pulled off, making a right on Koval Lane, and Knight's head of security, Alton "Buntry" MacDonald, pulled out of the caravan and gave chase, exchanging gunfire with the occupants of the drive-by vehicle, who hit MacDonald's vehicle as well. Meanwhile, Knight made a left U-turn across the median on Flamingo Road and headed in the opposite direction. Shakur was transported via ambulance, accompanied by Knight (Kading), to Las Vegas' University Medical Center of Southern Nevada, where surgeons removed his right lung and placed him on a ventilator. He was pronounced dead on September 13. No one has ever been charged in connection to Shakur's murder.
The day after the shooting, September 8, Anderson visited Naqiyy at his home in Compton. Anderson was treated at the UCLA Harbor Medical Center for a shoulder injury on September 9. That same day, a string of gang shootings began in Compton, leaving 12 people injured and three dead in what police describe as a gang war between Crips and Bloods sets -- a consequence of Shakur's murder. Anderson himself sustained gunshots from an AK-47 assault rifle to his knees during one such shooting.
In the days following Shakur's shooting, then-Compton gang unit investigator Bobby Ladd conveyed his suspicion that Anderson was the triggerman to Las Vegas police after analyzing the hotel security footage.
Michael Reed Dorrough and Orlando "Baby Lane" Anderson
On October 2, Anderson was arrested during a raid related to a Compton gang killing and released two days later without being charged. The raid was a joint effort conducted by the FBI, the Compton Police Department, the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department and two Las Vegas detectives, one of whom interviewed Anderson about Shakur's shooting. He was also the subject of a warrant issued in connection to the shooting death of Edward Webb at a party the previous April. The police affidavit submitted in order to secure the search warrants necessary for the raid, describe Shakur's murder as the result of a gang conflict between the South Side Crips and the Mob Piru Bloods, who were tied to Death Row Records. The affidavit also contends that days after Shakur's murder, Anderson was seen in possession of a .40-caliber Glock handgun and that his cousin, Jerry "Monk" Bonds, a fellow South Side Crip, was seen driving a white Cadillac matching the description of the drive-by vehicle into a Compton auto repair shop on September 11. The document goes on to mention that LVPD detectives seized a box of .40-caliber bullets from Anderson's cousin's residence.
Shortly after the raid, Anderson was subpoenaed to testify at a parole hearing for Knight, who faced jail time for participating in the assault at the MGM Grand. He testified in a November hearing that, contrary to popular opinion, Knight had attempted to break up the fight. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge J. Stephen Czuleger, who oversaw the hearing, decided that Anderson was lying and sentenced Knight to nine years in prison. Many believed that Knight had paid Anderson for his testimony.
In February of 1997, Sergeant Kevin Manning of the Las Vegas Police Department named Anderson as a possible suspect in Shakur's murder. However, the LVPD only questioned him once.
On September 8, Anderson filed a suit against Shakur's estate, asserting that his attack at the hands of the rapper, Knight and various Death Row employees at the MGM Grand caused him mental suffering as well as physical injuries. The suit asked for $1 million in damages. On September 12, Shakur's mother, Afeni, filed a wrongful-death suit against Anderson, naming him as Shakur's killer.
On May 29, 1998, Anderson's grandmother, Utah Williams, died. At about 3:10 that afternoon, he and fellow-South Side Crip Michael Reed Dorrough, drove his black Chevy Blazer to Rob's Car Wash located at Alondra Boulevard and Oleander Avenue, near Compton High School. After Anderson argued with Gerry Stone of the rival Corner Pocket Crips, about a drug debt, Stone pulled out a gun. According to witnesses, Dorrough convinced Stone to put his weapon away before Anderson pulled out a gun of his own, triggering a shootout. Anderson reportedly shot Stone to death, before his uncle and fellow Corner Pocket Crip, Michael Stone, in turn shot Anderson to death. Dorrough, who had been shot as well, then killed Michael Stone and after attempting to flee the scene by driving Anderson's Blazer from the passenger side, crashed.
Duane Keith "Keffe D" Davis and Orlando Anderson
All four were transported to the Martin Luther King, Jr./Drew Medical Center. Anderson and the Stones were pronounced dead shortly after their arrival. (One of the men was listed in critical condition before finally succumbing to his injuries) Dorrough was treated and then arrested by local police. He was later convicted of first-degree murder and on October 6, 1999, sentenced to three life terms without the possibility of parole, plus 49 years.
On May 30, a Glock matching the description of the weapon used to kill Shakur was discovered by the father of Edwards' girlfriend. After discovering the .40 caliber handgun in his backyard, the homeowner reported it to police. According to former Compton PD Gang Unit member Deputy Timothy "Blondie" Brennan, subsequent ballistic testing confirmed that the Glock was a match for the weapon used to murder Shakur. An LAPD memo unearthed in 2017 confirms Brennan's assertions yet also warns that the document itself should not be shared with Las Vegas PD. Brennan stated in 2017 that he came across the firearm in 2006 while sorting through records related to 3,800 guns, many of which had never been tested, and recognized the address where the pistol was found.
Anderson's uncle, Duane Keith "Keffe D" Davis, who headed a PCP ring and was a ranking member of the South Side Crips, sat down with an unnamed federal agent and LAPD detectives Greg Kading and Daryn Dupree, during a recorded proffer session on December 18, 2008, after agreeing to give information relating to Shakur's murder and Anderson's alleged involvement. Davis stated that his nephew shot Shakur four times with a .40 caliber Glock handgun from inside the car that pulled up alongside Knight's BMW. Davis also admitted to being in the car himself at the time of the shooting and stated that Knight, who'd known him since childhood, saw him after Anderson opened fire. According to Davis, Deandre Smith and Terrence "T-Brown" Brown rounded out the four occupants of the car. He stated that reputed New York drug-trafficker Eric "Von Zip" Martin supplied him with the Glock 40. But since Brown, the driver, pulled up on the right side of the BMW and he himself sat in the front passenger seat, he attempted to pass the weapon to Smith, who sat on the left side of the backseat. When Smith declined, Anderson, sitting behind Davis, took the handgun and shot across Smith. Davis went on to say that both Knight and Shakur failed to notice the Cadillac until the shooting started because they had been talking to the female occupants of a green Sebring convertible also parked to the right of the BMW.
