Derek Chauvin news: Floyd killer in solitary as police defend Nicholas Reardon shooting Ma’Khia Bryant

Welcome toThe Independent’s rolling coverage of the Derek Chauvin murder trial in Minneapolis, as the jury is deliberating the verdict following closing arguments on Monday.

Following weeks of testimony from both sides, the prosecution and defence ended their closing arguments on Monday, with Prosecutor Steve Schleicher urging jurors to “believe your eyes” as defence attorney Eric Nelson said that the state failed to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr Chauvin murdered Mr Floyd.

The court is now in recess until the jury reaches a verdict, which could take just a few hours or up to several weeks.

Following both sides resting their cases on Thursday, Judge Peter Cahill told jurors to prepare for a lengthy deliberation process, telling them: “If I were you, I would plan for long and hope for short.”

The trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer accused of murdering George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, last May, is nearing its end.

Following closing arguments on Monday, the jurors have been sequestered away from the outside world to decide on a verdict, which could take just a few hours or up to several weeks.

There is a large amount of witness testimony and evidence for the jurors to consider and it is unclear how long it will take the jury to announce a decision. Predicting the length of jury deliberations is difficult.

But when should we expect a verdict?

The judge overseeing the trial of Derek Chauvin said “abhorrent” comments from Congresswoman Maxine Waters could lead to the trial being overturned on appeal, throwing any verdict in the case of George Floyd’s death into doubt.

The Democratic Congresswoman travelled across state lines to tell protestors in Brooklyn Centre they needed to “get more confrontational” if Mr Chauvin is not convicted of first-degree murder, despite the court hearing only the lesser charges of unintentional murder and manslaughter.

Judge Peter Cahill said he was aware of the congresswoman saying anything less than a murder conviction was unacceptable, “and talk about being more confrontational”, which could result in the entire trial being thrown out.

“I’ll give you that Congresswoman Waters may have given you something on appeal, that may result in this whole trial being overturned,” Mr Cahill said.

“This goes back to what I’ve been saying from the beginning, I wish elected officials would stop talking about this case, especially in a manner that is disrespectful to the rule of law and the judicial branch and our function,” he added.

Mr Cahill said while the failure of elected officials to be respectful to the court was “abhorrent”, he did not think her comments prejudiced the jury enough to grant the defence’s motion for a mistrial.

Read Justin Vallejo’s full report here:

Hundreds of protesters marched through the streets of downtown Minneapolis on Monday night as jurors deliberated the charges faced by former police officer Derek Chauvin.

Mr Chauvin is currently standing trial for the murder of unarmed Black man George Floyd, who died in the former Minneapolis police officer’s custody last May after he knelt on his neck for close to nine minutes.

Following closing arguments on Monday, the jurors have been sequestered away from the outside world to decide on a verdict, which could take just a few hours or up to several weeks.

Civil rights leaders Rev Jesse Jackson and Rev Al Sharpton joined protesters as they called for justice for George Floyd.

Hundreds of students across the US joined school walkouts in Minneapolis to call for racial justice following the trial of former police officer Derek Chauvin and the death of Daunte Wright at the hands of police.

Mr Chauvin is currently standing trial for the murder of unarmed Black man George Floyd, who died in the former Minneapolis police officer’s custody last May after he knelt on his neck for close to nine minutes.

While, Mr Wright died last week after being shot by police officer Kim Potter, who has since been charged with manslaughter.

On Monday, students walked out of classrooms in Minnesota and across the US in reaction to the deaths of Mr Floyd and Mr Wright.

Closing arguments in the trial of Derek Chauvin for the killing of George Floyd finished on Monday and the jury was sequestered from the outside world to carry out their verdict deliberations.

The 45-year-old former police officer is accused of restraining Mr Floyd for up to nine and a half minutes during an arrest and causing the 46-year-old’s death in the custody of Minneapolis police.

The outcome of the trial – and arguably the future of US policing – will be decided by a jury of 12 after 15 days in the courtroom in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The city, which was the location of the death of Mr Floyd in May 2020, is bracing itself for the verdict, with the trial having been regarded as one of the most important civil rights cases in a generation.

What are the possible outcomes?

The trial of Derek Chauvin, the white former Minneapolis police officer charged with murdering George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, is now in the hands of a jury in Minneapolis, as both sides delivered their closing statements on Monday.

“This was not at accident,” prosecutor Steve Schleicher argued. “He did what he did on purpose, and it killed George Floyd. That force for 9 min and 29 seconds, that killed George Floyd. And he betrayed the badge and everything it stood for.”

The 12 jurors are now sequestered indefinitely until they reach a verdict in the case, in which Mr Chauvin faces two counts of murder and one of manslaughter, after kneeling on Mr Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes during an arrest last May for a counterfeit $20 bill.

Catch up on the key moments below:

The jury in the murder trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin resumed deliberations for a second day today, following four hours of it yesterday.

Mr Chauvin is currently standing trial for the murder of unarmed Black man George Floyd, who died in the former Minneapolis police officer’s custody last May after he knelt on his neck for close to nine minutes.

Following weeks of testimony from both sides, the prosecution and defence ended their closing arguments on Monday, with Prosecutor Steve Schleicher urging jurors to “believe your eyes” as defence attorney Eric Nelson said that the state failed to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr Chauvin murdered Mr Floyd.

The court is now in recess until the jury reaches a verdict, which could take just a few hours or up to several weeks.

Following both sides resting their cases on Thursday, Judge Peter Cahill told jurors to prepare for a lengthy deliberation process, telling them: “If I were you, I would plan for long and hope for short.”

George Floyd’s brother Philonise Floyd has revealed that President Joe Biden called his family to say he is praying for them.

On NBC’s Today show on Monday, Philonise said about the phone call with Mr Biden: “He knows how it is to lose a family member, and he knows the process of what we’re going through.

“So he was just letting us know that he was praying for us, hoping that everything will come out to be OK.”

Mr Chauvin is currently standing trial for the murder of unarmed Black man George Floyd, who died in the former Minneapolis police officer’s custody last May after he knelt on his neck for close to nine minutes.

The court is now in recess until the jury reaches a verdict, which could take just a few hours or up to several weeks.