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- Judge Peter Cahill said he would call jurors to ask if they had heard the announcement of the city’s $ 27 million settlement with George Floyd’s family.
- He said the timing of the announcement was unfortunate.
- Video footage showed how a white police officer’s knee was on Floyd’s neck as he cried for his life.
The judge in the trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer facing murder charges for George Floyd’s fatal arrest, said Monday that the timing of the city’s announcement of a $ 27 million settlement with the family Floyd’s was “unfortunate”.
Hennepin County District Court Judge Peter Cahill also said he would soon recall the seven jurors who were already sitting down so far to ask if they had seen any news of the settlement, which was announced on Friday, and whether it would affect their fairness.
“I would like city officials to stop talking so much about this case,” the judge said before resuming jury selection Monday morning. “At the same time, I don’t see any ill intent that they are trying to alter the criminal case.”
He is presiding over one of the most scrutinized trials in years, one that is being watched closely as an indicator of how American law enforcement agencies use force and violence to police blacks.
Chauvin, a white man, was captured on video of a passerby with his knee on Floyd’s neck for almost nine minutes as Floyd, a 46-year-old black man in handcuffs, cries out for his life and for his mother, who had recently passed away. .
Nationwide protests against racism and police brutality broke out shortly thereafter.
Floyd’s family filed a federal wrongful death lawsuit against Chauvin and the city of Minneapolis last year. The city held a widely watched press conference with family members on Friday to announce the $ 27 million settlement.
Eric Nelson, Chauvin’s lead attorney, said the news was “deeply disturbing” for the defense.
“By my count, this is the third highly damaging press leak or press release that has a very suspicious timing, to say the least, and has an incredible propensity to contaminate a group of jurors,” he told the court before jury selection will resume.
In addition to asking to call the seven jurors who were already seated, Nelson also asked the judge to reconsider his request to move the trial to a different county, which Cahill said he would consider.
Prosecutors from the Minnesota attorney general’s office told the court they had no control over the city’s mayor, council or media.
“You would agree that this is unfortunate, isn’t it?” the judge asked the prosecutors. “What do we have this reported in all the media when we are in the middle of the jury selection?”
Among the seated jurors are four white men, including one who is Hispanic; a white woman; a mestizo woman; and a black man who immigrated to the United States about 14 years ago. All but one are in their 20s and 30s, the court said.
Chauvin, 44, is charged with second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree murder. He pleaded not guilty and said he continued his police training.
All potential jurors who have appeared in Hennepin County District Court so far in a heavily fortified tower in downtown Minneapolis say they know who Chauvin is and what the video shows him doing; Most said they had formed a negative opinion of him, although some said they could remain open to the possibility that his actions were not criminal.
The court is scheduled to begin opening arguments on March 29. Chauvin faces up to 40 years in prison if convicted of the most serious charge.
