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Cd : @ Shakur Hurt in Drive-By Shooting Page 2 of 3 In the weekend shooting, Knight was driving with Shakur in a convoy of 10 cars about a quarter-mile from the glittering casino strip when a white Cadillac with four people inside pulled up alongside their black BMW and a passenger opened fire. Local media reports said dozens of witnesses looked on in horror. Police said they had begun an investigation into the shooting but had no suspects yet. “Drive-by shootings are not unknown here, but they usually occur between rival gang members whose reasons are for retaliation for other shootings," said Las Vegas Police Lt. Marc Maston. “I can't tell you the motivation behind this." But he said police were optimistic they would find the assailants. "This particular incident apparently had several witnesses. If they are credible, with good information, this should be solvable." Spokesmen for Death Row Records could not be reached for comment as to possible motives for the shooting. Shakur said earlier this year that he believed the 1994 robbery-shooting was a setup, fueling speculation in the hip-hop industry that rivalry between East Coast and West Coast rap labels may have taken a violent turn. Shakur himself has had many run-ins with the Jaw in recent years. In June, the singer faced a 120-day sentence for probation violations stemming from offenses including assault and battery and a 1994 sexual abuse conviction in New York. He had been allowed to remain free on $1.4 million bail -- paid by Death Row Records -- pending his appeat. Shakur served 11 months in prison for his involvement in the attack on a 21-year-old woman in a New York hotel room. He had been convicted in Los Angeles of assault and battery on a music video producer and for carrying a loaded, concealed weapon, and was scheduled for sentencing this week on the weapons charge. But in the world of rap, Shakur's convictions seemed only to enhance his status. His fourth solo album, "All Eyez on Me," a two-volume, 27-track recording featuring guest turns by fellow rappers Snoop Doggy Dogg, Rappin' 4-Tay and Method Man, debuted earlier this year and has sold more than 5 million copies. His previous album, "Me Against the World," had the dubious distinction of being the first album to reach No. | while its singer was in prison. Shakur also starred opposite Janet Jackson in the 1993 movie “Poetic Justice" and has been working on another film, "Gridlock." In interviews earlier this year, Shakur had said he was tired of living up to his outlaw image, one he had chronicled in a tattoo on his chest that pronounced "Thug Life." "| lived Thug Life," he said. "It was stupid ., . it's suicidal." But the rapper also said that he expected he would die violently. In July, Shakur told the British newspaper the Observer: “It's going to happen. Alf the {black people] who change the world die in violence. They don't get to die like regular ways. [Expletives] come take their lives." Oct 18 1996 08:47 AM