Judge postpones trial for three ex-cops
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The trial of three former Minneapolis police officers charged with aiding and abetting in the death of George Floyd will be pushed back to March 2022, in part to allow the publicity over Derek Chauvin's conviction to cool off, a judge ruled Thursday.
Thomas Lane, J. Kueng and Tou Thao were scheduled to face trial Aug. 23 on charges they aided and abetted both murder and manslaughter. The officers' codefendant, Chauvin, was convicted of murder and manslaughter counts. All four officers also face federal charges that allege they violated Floyd's civil rights during his May 25 arrest.
Judge Peter Cahill said he moved jury selection in the other officers' trial to March 8, 2022, so the federal case can go forward first. He also said he felt the need to put some distance between the three officers' trial and Chauvin's due to the high-profile nature of the case.
The news that the trial was being pushed back came during a Thursday hearing on pretrial motions. The former officers waived their right to appear and were not in court, but their defense attorneys all agreed to the postponement. The state, via Assistant Attorney General Matthew Frank, did not support the delay. It wasn't made clear at Thursday's motions hearing who originally sought the change.
Chauvin, who was seen in widely viewed bystander video pressing his knee into Floyd's neck as the Black man said he couldn't breathe, was convicted in April of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and manslaughter. He's to be sentenced June 25.
During Thursday's hearing, attorneys for the defense argued that prosecutors should be sanctioned after media reports that Chauvin had planned to plead guilty a year ago. Frank said the Attorney General's Office was willing to submit affidavits from personnel involved in the case to state that they were not the source of the leak. A prosecutor from the Hennepin County Attorney's Office said they would do the same.
Thao's attorney, Bob Paule, said in a motion filed in February that he wants an order sanctioning the state for "its role — directly or indirectly — in the leaking of highly prejudicial information related to potential plea agreements of co-defendants."
Cahill said he would hold an evidentiary hearing on the issue in August.
The New York Times reported Feb. 10 that Chauvin was ready to plead guilty to a third-degree murder charge last year but then Attorney General William Barr rejected the agreement. The Associated Press published a similar report the next day, citing two law enforcement officials with direct knowledge of the talks. Paule alleged that the leaks came from the state, and asked that anyone who did so be barred from participating in the trial. Tom Plunkett, Kueng's attorney, echoed his statements.