Derek Chauvin: Judge to consider trial delay in case of officer accused of murdering George Floyd

A judge presiding in the case against police officer Derek Chauvin said they will consider a delay in the trial date after George Floyd’s family reached a $27 million settlement with the city of Minneapolis. 

Jury selection will go forward as scheduled, the judge said Monday, but confirmed the delay would be considered after a historic settlement was reached in a separate lawsuit the family filed after Mr Floyd’s death. 

Mr Chauvin was seen kneeling on Mr Floyd’s neck as he pleaded for his life on a cellphone video that subsequently went viral. His death sparked demands for police reform nationwide and prompted a summer of protests led in part by the Black Lives Matter movement which called for a racial reckoning in the United States. 

Judge Peter Cahill of the Hennepin County District Court also said he would soon recall the seven jurors already seated so far to ask them if they had seen news of the settlement, which was announced on Friday, and whether it would affect their impartiality.

“I wish city officials would stop talking about this case so much,” the judge said before resuming jury selection on Monday morning. “At the same time, I don’t find any evil intent that they are trying to tamper with the criminal case.”

He is presiding over one of the most closely scrutinized trials in years, one that is being closely watched as a bellwether of the way US law enforcement agencies use force and violence in policing Black people.

Mr Floyd’s family filed a federal wrongful-death lawsuit against Mr Chauvin and the city of Minneapolis last year. The city held a widely viewed news conference with family members on Friday to announce the $27 million settlement.

Eric Nelson, Mr Chauvin’s lead lawyer, said the news was “profoundly disturbing” to the defense.

“By my count, this is the third highly prejudicial press leak or press release that has very suspicious timing, to say the least, and has an incredible propensity to taint a jury pool,” he told the court before jury selection resumed.

Besides asking to recall the seven jurors already seated, Mr Nelson also asked the judge to reconsider his request to move the trial to a different county, which Mr Cahill said he would consider.

Prosecutors from the Minnesota attorney general’s office told the court they had no control over the city’s mayor, council or news media.

“You would agree that this is unfortunate, wouldn’t you?” the judge asked prosecutors. “That we have this reported all over the media when we’re in the midst of jury selection?”

Among the seated jurors are four white men, including one who is Hispanic; one white woman; a woman who is of mixed race; and a Black man who immigrated to the United States about 14 years ago. All but one are in their 20s and 30s, the court said.

Mr Chauvin, 44, is charged with second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. He has pleaded not guilty, saying he followed his police training.

All potential jurors who have appeared so far in the Hennepin County District Court in a heavily fortified tower in downtown Minneapolis say they know who Mr Chauvin is and what the video shows him doing; most said they had formed a negative opinion of him, though some said they could remain open to the possibility his actions were not criminal.

The court is planning to have opening arguments commence on March 29. Mr Chauvin faces up to 40 years in prison if convicted on the most serious charge.

Reuters contributed to this report