Judge pauses jury selection in trial of Floyd murder accused

THE judge overseeing the trial of a former Minneapolis police officer accused over the death of George Floyd has paused jury selection for at least a day while an appeal proceeds over the possible reinstatement of a third-degree murder charge.

As hundreds of protesters gathered outside the courthouse to call for the conviction of Derek Chauvin, Judge Peter Cahill said he did not have jurisdiction to rule on whether the third-degree murder charge should be reinstated against the former officer while the issue was being challenged.

But he said prosecutors’ argument that the whole case would be impacted was “tenuous”.

Judge Cahill initially ruled that jury selection would begin as scheduled yesterday, but prosecutors said they would ask the Court of Appeals to intervene, which could put the case on hold. As a result, the judge sent the potential jurors home for the day.

Mr Chauvin is charged with secondbegan, degree murder and manslaughter over Mr Floyd’s death.

Legal experts say reinstating the third-degree murder charge would improve the odds of getting a conviction.

Mr Chauvin’s lawyer, Eric Nelson, said yesterday he would ask the state Supreme Court to review a Court of Appeals decision that ordered Judge Cahill to reconsider the charge.

Jury selection is expected to take at least three weeks.

Mr Floyd was declared dead on May 25 after Mr Chauvin, who is white, pressed his knee down on the handcuffed and prone black man’s neck for almost nine minutes, holding his position even after Mr Floyd went limp.

Mr Floyd’s death sparked sometimes violent protests in Minneapolis and beyond, and led to a nationwide reckoning on race relations.

Mr Chauvin and three other officers were fired; the others face an August trial on aiding and abetting charges.

Hundreds of people gathered outside the courthouse as proceedings many carrying signs that read: Justice for George Floyd and Convict Killer Cops.

One speaker took a microphone and decried the barricades – concrete barriers topped by chain-link fencing, barbed wire and razor wire – set up around the courthouse.

Inside the courtroom, Mr Chauvin followed the proceedings attentively, making notes on a legal pad.

Mr Nelson earlier argued that pre-trial publicity of the case and the subsequent violent unrest in Minneapolis would make it impossible to find an impartial jury in Hennepin County.

But Judge Cahill said last year that moving the trial would probably not cure the problem of a potentially tainted jury pool because “no corner of the state of Minnesota” has been shielded from pre-trial publicity.

The potential jurors – who must be at least 18, US citizens and residents of Hennepin County – were sent questionnaires to determine how much they have heard about the case and whether they have formed any opinions.

Besides biographical and demographic information, jurors were asked about prior contacts with police, whether they have protested against police brutality and whether they believe the justice system is fair.

Some of the questions get specific, such as how often a potential juror has watched the bystander video of Mr Floyd’s arrest, or whether they carried a sign at a protest and what that sign said.

The defence can object to up to 15 potential jurors without giving a reason; prosecutors can block up to nine without providing a reason.

Both sides can also argue to dismiss an unlimited number of jurors “for cause”, meaning they must provide a reason why they believe that juror should not serve.

Jury selection will end after 14 people are picked – 12 jurors who will deliberate the case and two alternates who will not be part of deliberations unless needed. Their names will be kept confidential until further order of the court.

The number of seats in the courtroom has been limited for social distancing due to Covid and seats for jurors have been spaced out.

Mr Floyd’s death sparked sometimes violent protests in Minneapolis and beyond