MN - George Floyd, 46, died in police custody, Minneapolis, 25 May 2020 *officers charged* #3

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got this article in my Alerts:

No immediate ruling in request to delay trial in Floyd case

Jan. 7, 2021:

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota judge overseeing the case against four former Minneapolis police officers charged in the death of George Floyd said Thursday that he would take under advisement a prosecution request to delay the trial by three months due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
[.....]
All four men, who were fired, will be tried together.

Attorneys for Thao, Lane and Kueng objected to the government's argument, though attorneys for Chauvin and Thao have made their own requests for postponement, saying prosecutors violated rules on disclosing evidence. Prosecutors say they haven't violated the rules.
[.....]
Thursday's hearing was held over Zoom and was open to the public, with strict rules that spectators keep their video screens off, stay muted and not record or take any images of the proceeding. A handful of people ignored those rules — despite a stern warning from Cahill that they would be removed from the call for inappropriate courtroom behavior.
[.....]
The four former police officers were not required to be at this hearing and did not appear with their attorneys.
 
Freeman cited possible fraud in her decision last October rejecting the couple's proposed divorce settlement that would have given most of Derek Chauvin's assets to his wife.

"The Court has a duty to ensure that marriage dissolution agreements are fair and equitable," Freeman wrote last October. "One badge of fraud is a party's transfer of 'substantially all' of his or her assets."

Several veteran divorce attorneys have said Freeman's October ruling fueled speculation that Kellie Chauvin filed for divorce to protect the couple's assets in the face of civil litigation.

Derek and Kellie Chauvin ordered to file public documents in divorce case - StarTribune.com
 
2 trials in George Floyd case: Chauvin trial in March, 3 other former officers in late summer

Interesting that they were able to get separate trials. And that Chauvin is going first. I thought that Thomas Lane and Alexander Kueng were two of the unluckiest guys in the world. It was literally their first week on the job, and who knows what the heck they are doing the first week?

Were they supposed to wrestle Chauvin, a senior officer, to the ground? They stood around, but if I was making a defense for them, it is such a classic "Stanley Milgram" defense...

Milgram experiment - Wikipedia

They were being "obedient" to the "authority" figure, Chauvin. I don't see them going down for this.

Who should really be charged is Chauvin's supervisor, especially if Chauvin had been written up for this previously. Although, it rarely gets "written", usually a verbal issue...no paper trail. But if Chauvin had any history of abuse or racism, that is documented, I wonder why the supervisor gets a pass for leaving a dangerous officer loose.
 
Friday, January 15th:
*Omnibus Hearing (re Tax evasion) (@ 1:30pm CT) - MN – *Derek Michael Chauvin (44) - charged (7/22/20) with 6 counts of aiding & abetting taxes-false or fraudulent returns-filed with commissioner & 3 counts aiding & abetting taxes-failure to file return, report, document.
Court info from 7/22/20 thru 10/26/20 reference post #140 here:
MN - George Floyd, 46, unarmed, killed in police custody, Minneapolis, 25 May 2020 *arrests* #3
12/11/20 Update: Hearing held by remote technology. Next Omnibus hearing on 1/15/21.
*Divorce – Washington County
A divorce settlement that would have given most of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin’s assets to his wife was rejected by a judge who cited the possibility of fraud. Washington County District Judge Juanita Freeman wrote in her October ruling that judges can deny an uncontested agreement reached between a couple, such as with the Chauvins, if “the transfer features ‘badges of fraud.’ “The Court has a duty to ensure that marriage dissolution agreements are fair & equitable,” Freeman wrote. “One badge of fraud is a party’s transfer of ‘substantially all’ of his or her assets.” “This is just speculation, but it’s possible that the [agreement] was intentionally drafted to get assets out of Chauvin’s name in anticipation of a civil judgment against him from the estate of George Floyd,” said divorce attorney Marc Beyer. “That may be what the court is getting at when it references ‘badges of fraud.’ ” Chauvin does not have a divorce lawyer. However, Freeman wrote that under the agreement, Kellie Chauvin would have received all the equity in their two homes, all the money in their bank & investment accounts & all the money from Derek Chauvin’s pension & retirement accounts. Funds from two of Chauvin’s accounts that were earned before the couple’s 2010 marriage would have been exempt. Chauvin was a Minneapolis officer from 2001 until his firing this year.
The case has been set for a pretrial hearing on March 26 & for trial on April 26.
MN - George Perry Floyd, Jr. (46) (May 25, 2020, Minneapolis, arrested for forgery & killed in police custody) - *Derek Michael Chauvin (44) police officer who held his knee on Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes & 46 seconds (& non responsive for 2 minutes & 53 seconds before officer took his knee off his neck; from 8:19pm to 8:27pm his knee was on Floyd’s neck; Minnesota prosecutors acknowledged Wednesday, June 17, that a police officer had his knee on Floyd’s neck for 7 minutes, 46 seconds, not the 8:46) has been fired (5/26/20) & arrested & charged (5/29/20) with 3rd degree murder & 2nd degree manslaughter. Charges changed (6/3/20) to 2nd degree murder-unintentional-while committing a felony, 3rd degree murder-perpetrating eminently dangerous act & evincing depraved mind & 2nd degree manslaughter-culpable negligence creating unreasonable risk. $500K bond, reset (6/8/20) @ $1.25M & $1M w/conditions. Posted non-cash $1M bond (10/7/20) & has been released from jail.
Bond Conditions: Follow all instructions of probation; Conditions, other; Contact with probation; Do not leave Minnesota without written court approval; Do not ship/transport/possess or receive firearm or ammo; No contact with victim or family; Remain law-abiding; Make all future court appearances; Sign Waiver of Extradition; Post Bail or Bond with No Conditions: $1,25M; Post Bail or Bond with Conditions: $1M.
Trial set to begin on 3/8/21. Oral arguments hearing on 1/7/21.
 
Former Los Angeles police captain who testified in Rodney King case to serve as 'expert on use of force' in Floyd trial

Jan. 15, 2021

Thursday, an attorney for one of the four former Minneapolis police officers involved in the George Floyd murder case filed notice that a former Los Angeles police captain, who testified that officers didn't use excessive force in the Rodney King case, is expected to be called as an expert on use of force for the defense.

Court documents state attorney Earl Gray, who represents former Minneapolis police officer Thomas Lane in the case, said in a notice he plans to call Greg Meyer as an expert witness in the Aug. 23 trial, where Lane, J Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao will be present.
[.....]
Additionally on Thursday, Kueng's attorney Thomas Plunkett filed notice to bring retired Missouri police officer Steve Ijames as an expert witness as well. According to court files, he testified for the defense in the 2020 trial of Washington County Sheriff's Deputy Brian Krook. Krook shot and killed 23-year-old Benjamin Evans in 2018 after police responded to a report of a suicidal armed man. The deputy was acquitted of second-degree manslaughter.


I love Earl Grey tea...
48x48px-LL-5c01b62f_smileyvault-cute-big-smiley-animated-060.gif
 
https://www.startribune.com/tax-eva...ed-out-until-after-his-murder-tria/600011183/

Jan. 18, 2021

The tax evasion trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin and his estranged wife has been pushed to June 30, by which time his trial on murder and manslaughter charges in the death of George Floyd is expected to be over.

Both Chauvin and Kellie Chauvin appeared remotely Friday in separate and very brief hearings before Washington County District Judge Sheridan Hawley.

The case was set for June at the request of Derek Chauvin's lawyer, Eric Nelson, who also represents him in the Floyd case.
 
ORDER:
1. All defendants’ motions to admit as Rule 404(b)/Spreigl evidence at trial evidence relating George Floyd’s May 6, 2019 arrest by the Minneapolis Police Department and his subsequent admission to HCMC as well as his 2007 Harris County, Texas conviction for aggravated robbery are DENIED.
2. The State’s motion to admit as Rule 404(b)/Spreigl evidence at trial in State v. Chauvin the eight separate incidents as summarized above is GRANTED IN PART AND DENIED IN PART. The State may introduce evidence of the Aug. 22, 2015 incident, MPD CCN 2015-317385, (provided the State presents clear and convincing evidence that Chauvin was present when a medical professional made the remarks summarized in the State’s offer of proof) and of the June 25, 2017 incident, MPD CCN 2017-235836. The State’s motion to admit the other six incidents involving Chauvin as summarized above is DENIED.
3. The State’s motion to admit as Rule 404(b)/Spreigl evidence at trial in State v. Thao the nine separate incidents as summarized above is DENIED.
4. The State’s motion to admit as Rule 404(b)/Spreigl evidence at trial in State v. Kueng evidence regarding the incident on December 23-24, 2019 as summarized above is DENIED.

https://mncourts.gov/mncourtsgov/media/High-Profile-Cases/27-CR-20-12646/Order01262021.pdf
 
Attorney General Keith Ellison’s office filed a brief Friday explaining why Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill should not split the trials of the four former cops into two, the Star-Tribune reported. As it stands now, one starts in March and a second in August.

Prosecutors suggested having one trial in the summer because more people will have been vaccinated against COVID-19. The trial is expected to involve many witnesses and participants and draw thousands of protesters.

“This appeal involves a question of exceptional and unique importance in one of the highest-profile cases in our Nation’s history,” the prosecutors wrote. “… This is a matter, quite literally, of life and death.”

Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin is scheduled to be tried on second-degree murder and manslaughter charges on March 8. Opening statements are expected March 29, with about a month of testimony and evidence about Floyd’s May 25 death to follow.

His former colleagues — J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao — are scheduled to be tried in one trial starting Aug. 23. They are charged with aiding and abetting murder and manslaughter. All four have posted bond.
https://nypost.com/2021/01/30/george-floyd-trial-could-be-covid-19-superspreader-event/
 
Selwyn Jones, George Floyd’s uncle, may live several hundred miles away in South Dakota, but he is keeping close tabs on the criminal justice system in relation to his nephew’s deadly arrest.

Jones was disgusted when he saw Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer whose knee to the back of Floyd’s neck sparked global outrage, make bail and be allowed to live outside Minnesota while awaiting a murder trial.

“Me being a Black man, I’ve seen a lot of things happening in this world and one thing I’ve never seen is somebody get out on bond and leave the state they were in, especially with the charges he has against him," said Jones.

“They committed the crime together, why not be tried together?" he said.

He’s not sure what will happen with the state’s efforts to get the case rejoinedand moved to the summer because of public health worries around COVID-19.

"If you are an intelligent adult, you would obviously have COVID concerns," said Jones.

Mike Bryant, a local criminal defense attorney not connected to the Floyd proceedings, told FOX 9 he anticipates the state’s Court of Appeals will quickly schedule oral arguments on the matter with Chauvin’s current March 8 trial date fast approaching.

"There’s going to be all sorts of twists and turns in this thing. When they’re actually going to stand in front of a jury, who knows?" said Bryant.

George Floyd’s uncle told FOX 9 he doesn’t think a trial in this case will happen for months, but promised he and his family will be there every single day to make sure justice is done.

"People need to see our face," said Jones.
George Floyd’s uncle reacts to COVID-19 concerns for upcoming trials
 
This case, along with the death of George Floyd in May 2020, has resulted in changes to the use of body cameras for Minneapolis police officers
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-05-04/how-the-mohamed-noor-justine-damond-trial-unfolded/11070134
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Police Chief Medaria Arradondo announced on Monday that officers will no longer be allowed to turn off their body cameras to talk privately when they respond to calls.

"We've seen as a community and as a police force, body camera footage increasingly plays a crucial role in understanding critical events in our community," Mr Arradondo said in a statement.

The incident commander speaking to Noor after he shot Ms Damond Ruszczyk turned off her body camera.

Other officers told him not to say a word, according to prosecutors and court testimony.

Many responding officers turned their body cameras on and off at different times.

Mr Floyd, who was black and handcuffed, died May 25 after Officer Derek Chauvin, who is white, pressed his knee against Mr Floyd's neck.

Former Minneapolis police officer loses appeal against murder conviction of Australian woman

What Worcester has done after vowing to implement changes to its police department
 
A soul-stirring marriage of R&B, gospel, neo-soul and hip-hop stylings thematically linked by ruminations on love’s role in personal and communal healing, “This Love Thing” has already garnered acclaim from the likes of NPR’s All Things Considered, the Chicago Tribune and Al Jazeera. The video accompanying the collection’s first single – the hauntingly beautiful “Mama Please,” its title echoing the last words uttered by George Floyd before he died at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer, after allegedly attempting to use a counterfeit bill – has been added to the rotation on BET Soul.

The creation of this music was a labor of love. As D’Nur sees it, “Love is the only thing that’s going to carry us through.”

“If there’s any driving force that will take us back to a place where we can work together, to exist as one people, then love is going to be it,” D’Nur said. “With ‘Mama Please,’ we’re talking about a mother’s love. We’re reflecting on the role of the mother in community-building. In Islam, the Arabic word for community is ‘Ummat,’ and the root of that is ‘Umi,’ which means ‘mother.’ Mos Def taught us that (with his song ‘Umi Says’).

“The mother is the first community leader. So, a mother’s love is the force that can help us to turn back toward where we once were as a people. Love as a solution. Community love. Working together to fight for justice. We learned this in 2020.

“Mama Please,” both the song and the video, carry on this artist-as-documentarian tradition. D’Nur drew from a deep well of emotion and experience to create a song about a mother’s grief that she calls “transformative.”

“We recorded that song right after George Floyd was murdered. I was imagining what the transition of the spirit leaving the body and returning to its spiritual form might sound like. I wanted to focus on that idea more than the fact that we all became witnesses to this public lynching.

“I believe his spirit returned to his mother. Perhaps when he was saying, ‘Mama, please,’ he saw her. I imagined her hand reaching out to him and welcoming him home. That brought me great comfort.”

“Love is the answer. Stevie Wonder, Bob Marley, David Bowie, Nina Simone – they all taught us that. Love is the only thing that’s going to carry us through. That’s why this project is so important. It addresses love on many different levels, with many different layers, interwoven with a pure intention.
Buffalo's Drea D'Nur sends message of love with new recording project

 
Heads of the Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association, Minnesota Sheriffs Association and Minnesota Police Chiefs Association, wrote: "Our members remain concerned...that no matter what legislation is passed, the response for mutual aid will not be as robust as the public may expect. Our members' concern is due to the continued demonization of law enforcement officers by certain public officials at various levels of government."
Minnesota Republicans object to proposed state security funding for Derek Chauvin's trial
 
Neck restraints, or strangleholds, are promoted by American police as safe ways of rendering suspects unconscious by reducing blood flow to the brain with a carotid restraint compressing two large blood vessels on either sides of the neck. Chokeholds, by contrast, cut off a person's airflow by applying pressure directly to the neck and throat.

Polling from the University of Maryland School of Public Policy last summer showed a majority of voters support ending the practice. Eight in 10 Democrats backed every proposal surveyed and more than five in 10 Republicans supported banning chokeholds and neck restraints.

A study published in JAMA Neurology by neurologists at Massachusetts General Hospital found carotid compression can commonly induce stroke, seizure, and death with as little as 13 pounds of force or the weight of a house cat.
Washington GOP bill would limit neck restraints, activists want them banned
 
imstilla.grandma said:
Neck restraints, or strangleholds, are promoted by American police as safe ways of rendering suspects unconscious by reducing blood flow to the brain with a carotid restraint compressing two large blood vessels on either sides of the neck. Chokeholds, by contrast, cut off a person's airflow by applying pressure directly to the neck and throat.
Click to expand...
RSBM
Spoiler alert:

They are not.
 
https://www.startribune.com/citing-...loyd-case-want-to-add-more-charges/600019052/

Feb. 4, 2021

Prosecutors sought Thursday to add third-degree murder charges against four former Minneapolis police officers in the death of George Floyd because of an appellate court ruling this week in the case of another ex-officer convicted in the 2017 death of an Australian woman.

In the case of Derek Chauvin, prosecutors want to reinstate the third-degree murder charge that was dismissed in October by Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill. In the cases of the three other officers, J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao, prosecutors want to add the charge to their complaints.

Prosecutor Matthew Frank, acting on behalf of Attorney General Keith Ellison's office, cited a precedential state Court of Appeals ruling against Mohamed Noor, a former Minneapolis police officer, that was published Tuesday.
[.....]
As was the case for Noor, a conviction of third-degree murder could lead to longer sentences for the former officers involved in Floyd's arrest, especially the three accused accomplices.
[.....]
Frank said Cahill now has clear guidance on the elements of third-degree murder and he asked the judge to reinstate the charge against Chauvin and allow the state to add the charge against the other three.
[.....]
The Court of Appeals ruling may not be the final word on what constitutes third-degree murder.

Noor attorney Thomas Plunkett said he will ask the state Supreme Court to consider the case. But the Supreme Court could refuse, which would allow the appellate decision to stand.

If the higher court takes up the Noor case, a decision would be unlikely to come this year.
 
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