Derek Chauvin (Photo: via Getty Images)
Derek Chauvin‘s attorney is requesting an appeals court to overturn the former Minneapolis police officer’s convictions in the 2020 murder of George Floyd, claiming he was deprived of a fair trial, according to the Associated Press.
Back on May 25, 2020, Chauvin, who is white, was filmed pinning Floyd, a Black man, on the ground with his neck to Floyd’s neck for nearly ten minutes. Floyd could be heard crying out “I can’t breathe,” with his death launching police brutality and racism protests worldwide.
On Wednesday, William Mohrman, Chauvin’s attorney, told a panel of three judges of the Minnesota Court of Appeals that Chauvin’s trial judge should have moved the trial out of Minneapolis due to the massive amount of publicity the case garnered.
“The primary issue on this appeal is whether a criminal defendant can get a fair trial consistent with constitutional requirements in a courthouse surrounded by concrete block, barbed wire, two armored personnel carriers, and a squad of National Guard troops, all of which or whom are there for one purpose: in the event that the jury acquits the defendant,” Mohrman said.
However, Neal Katyal – a special attorney for the state – countered that Chauvin received “one of the most transparent and thorough trials in our nation’s history.”
“Chauvin’s many arguments before this court do not come close to justifying reversal,” Katyal said.
Chauvin was sentenced to 21 years in federal prison after pleading guilty in a separate federal civil rights. He’s currently serving that sentence in Arizona, concurrent with his state sentence, according to the Associated Press.
“Judge Cahill managed this trial with enormous care, and even if Chauvin could identify some minor fault, any error is harmless,” Katyal said. “The evidence of Chauvin’s guilt was captured on video for the world to see.”
On Wednesday, Appeals Judge Peter Reyes said that the court would make a ruling on Chauvin’s appeal within 90 days. The former officer did not attend the oral arguments.
Even if Chauvin wins his appeal, his federal prison sentence will keep him in prison longer than his state sentence would, due to the fact that he would qualify for parole earlier in the state system, the outlet reports.
