Justice For George Floyd: The Derek Chauvin Murder Trial Begins

This article will be continuously updated throughout the Derek Chauvin murder trial, which begins Monday, March 8.

UPDATED: 12:35 p.m. ET, March 9

The first juror in the murder trial of the former police officer accused of killing George Floyd was selected late Tuesday morning.

Jury selection resumed Tuesday morning, one day after its original start was postponed to allow the court to weigh additional charges against the defendant.

Derek Chauvin — who was seen on video casually applying what appeared to be deadly pressure to Floyd’s neck as the unarmed Black man was handcuffed face-down on a Minneapolis street’s pavement for about nine minutes on May 25 — stands charged with second-degree unintentional murder and second-degree manslaughter. But on Tuesday, he could also have a third-degree murder charge reinstated after it was dropped in October on a legal technicality.

The decision to pause jury duty on the trial’s first day came as the area around the courthouse was flooded with protesters demanding justice for Floyd. Vigils and rallies took place across the country Monday night.

Once Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill sorts out the third-degree murder charge, jury duty was expected to resume later Tuesday morning or afternoon.

The process of selecting a jury has been given three weeks, with opening statements scheduled to begin no later than March 29.

 

Everybody can agree that justice for Floyd is the primary objective of Chauvin’s murder trial. But whether that justice can actually be achieved is a completely different story — even with the damning evidence of a viral video showing Chauvin, hands in his pockets, almost shrugging while staring indifferently at witnesses warning that he was killing Floyd, and the momentum of a racial reckoning sparked by the death on Memorial Day.

If you’re looking for footage of the killing, you won’t find it here.

But that fateful moment has prompted a wave of protests demanding change to policing in America in order to invest in the Black and brown communities that are disproportionately affected by law enforcement.

Just last week, the House passed the George Floyd Justice In Policing Act, sweeping legislation that reimagines how police departments operate through accountability and transparency.

Most relevant to Chauvin’s murder trial, the George Floyd Justice In Policing Act aims to hold police accountable in part by collecting data about officers accused of misconduct and worse behavior. Chauvin, who turns 45 on March 19 and has pleaded not guilty, has a history of using brutal neck restraints, other suspects have claimed.

Advocates say Chauvin shouldn’t even have been working as a police officer on Memorial Day considering his violent past. The Minnesota Attorney General’s Office is hoping to introduce these claims as evidence of a pattern of Chauvin’s renegade style of policing that also appeared to kill Floyd.

Adding insult to literal injury, Chauvin has a notable history of being placed on leave for officer-involved shootings and he remains the subject of “a dozen police conduct complaints that resulted in no disciplinary action.” During his 19-year-career, Chauvin was praised for valor by his department, even after shooting a Black man back in 2008 who survived the shooting.

A judge in October upheld the most serious murder charge against Chauvin in Floyd’s death. For the third-degree murder charges to stick, the law requires that someone cause the death of another person while committing an act inherently dangerous to others.

Chauvin was bailed out in October on a $1 million bond.

If convicted, Chauvin — who began his career with the Minneapolis Police Academy in October 2001 — could be sentenced to 55 years in prison, effectively spending the rest of his life behind bars.

Even though three other Minneapolis police officers were assisting Chauvin when Floyd died, Chauvin will face trial alone. Tou Thao, Thomas Lane, and J. Alexander Kueng — the other cops with Floyd — will be tried together, apart from Chauvin, in a trial scheduled to begin in August. The three of them stand charged with aiding and abetting murder and manslaughter.

NewsOne will be constantly updating this file as the Derek Chauvin murder trial progresses. Check back for developments and keep reading to find compelling photos, video and other key moments from the trial.

Justice For George Floyd: The Derek Chauvin Murder Trial Begins  was originally published on newsone.com