The Supreme Court rejected an appeal made by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin for a new trial in the murder of George Floyd.
The decision on Monday left in place the conviction against the former police officer for the killing of the Black man in May 2020. Chauvin's lawyers had asked the high court in October to take up his legal battle. It centered around a Minnesota trial court's denial of the defendant's requests for a change of venue and to sequester the jury.
Derek Chauvin Requests New Trial
The ex-police officer argued that the decision to maintain the proceedings in Minneapolis deprived him of his right to a fair trial. He said that this was because of pretrial publicity and the threat of violence and riots if he was acquitted of the charges against him.
In a filing to the court, Chauvin's lawyers said that their client's case showed the profound difficulties that trial courts face in consistently ensuring a criminal defendant's right to an impartial jury even when extreme cases come along, as per CBS News.
They added that the jurors in the initial trial who heard the case had a "vested interest in finding Chauvin guilty to prevent further rioting in the community where they lived. They also allegedly wanted to avoid the possible threat of physical harm to them or their families.
In April, the Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed the former police officer's conviction and rejected his request for a new trial. This was after the defendant's lawyer challenged the decision by Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill not to move the trial from Minneapolis, among other issues.
But the state Supreme Court declined to review that particular decision in July and left Chauvin's conviction and 22.5-year sentence in place. The 12-member Hennepin County jury found the defendant guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter in April 2021 for the killing of Floyd.
George Floyd's Murder
The murder of the 46-year-old Black man made national headlines as it was recorded on video and led to protests against police brutality and racial injustice. At the time of the incident, Chauvin was found to have kneeled on Floyd's neck for nearly 10 minutes despite the man's cries of not being able to breathe, according to Fox News.
Chauvin's plea for a new trial comes after new evidence allegedly shows that he was not the cause of Floyd's death. He noted that he would never have pleaded guilty in 2021 if he had known about the theories of a pathologist from Kansas that he has been communicating with since February.
The other officers involved in Floyd's death are serving smaller sentences when compared to Chauvin. These are J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane, and Tou Thao. Thao was sentenced to serve 42 months, Kueng was sentenced to serve 36 months, and Lane was sentenced to serve 30 months.
In a statement, Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Department of Justice said that the four officers have all been convicted and sentenced to prison for the killing of Floyd. She added that they will be held accountable for their crimes, said Patch.
