State vs. Chauvin trial Day Eight: 2 jurors excused after new questioning, 5 remain to be selected

Tommy Wiita

4:14 p.m.

Juror No. 85 has been accepted to serve on the jury. The total number of members stands at nine as of Wednesday afternoon.

The court is in recess until 8:30 a.m. Thursday. The judge said they will have discussions over one of the state’s experts Thursday and address the change of venue request, continuance and the May 2019 arrest incident involving Floyd on Friday.

3:15 p.m.

The court is back in session. Juror No. 85 will be the last juror questioned on Wednesday.

The juror, a mother, says she has seen that jury selection has begun and the settlement, but noted she hasn’t seen details on the settlement. She adds that none of that will affect her decision-making in the case.

In this image taken from video, Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill presides over pre-trial motions, prior to continuing jury selection, Monday, March 15, 2021, in the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, at the Hennepin County Courthouse in Minneapolis, Minn. Chauvin is charged in the May 25, 2020, death of George Floyd. [Court TV]

"I don’t think that that declares, guilt, one way or another, I think people settle for many reasons," she said about the settlement.

She says her job includes "serving clients" and her company is willing to let her serve for awhile.

She says she is also a wife. Spends a lot of time at hockey rinks during the winter. She has some concern about when juror’s names would be released at some point. However, she doesn’t have any immediate concerns but said the government center’s set-up was "unnerving." She understands the reasoning behind it.

The potential juror says she would stand her ground when it came to her personal belief on which way she would decide in a jury.

She said she saw clips of the video shown on the news. She did not seek out the entire video. The woman stated on the questionnaire she formed a "somewhat negative" opinion on Chauvin. She formed a "neutral" opinion on Floyd.

She tells Nelson she is able to put her opinions to the side if she were to serve on the jury.

The possible juror stated her only conversations about what was happening involved her asking friends, who lived in the downtown Minneapolis area, how they were as she was concerned for their safety.

"Negative was obviously there… a lot of damage done to businesses and probably homes… the positive things I see that came out of it were really giving people a voice that maybe didn’t feel heard," she said about the unrest that followed Floyd’s death.

The woman says police make her feel safe in her community. She adds that police officers are humans and make some mistakes when asked about her opinion on defunding the police. She adds she doesn’t have a personal experience with police mistreatment of others, but she is aware of incidents relating to that from the media.

"I feel like as humans they can make mistakes as well and if there’s a case in which people feel like anyone was mistreated in any way, I think they should be asked about it," she said. She also stated that "there is always room for improvement" when it comes to the justice system and anything else.

She discussed her work, which is a management consultant position, and how they help companies navigate things like technology and cultural changes. She added that she worked with one company that was about to go out of business, which would have affected "thousands of employees." Regarding if she has consulted a company on diversity and inclusion, she responded no.

She told the state prosecution team that she would agree that if you don’t cooperate with police, and something negative happens to you, you have yourself to blame.

2:53 p.m.

Juror No. 83 has been excused by the judge. The judge noted that she was "very emotional" about the case and possibly serving on the jury.

The court is in recess until 3:10 p.m.

2:47 p.m.

Juror No. 79 has been accepted to serve on the jury. He is the eighth person to be seated so far.

He is described to be a Black man in his 40s.

The audio has been cut to begin questioning with Juror No. 83.

2:10 p.m.

The potential juror says the only news he is aware of involving the case recently was the civil settlement. He assures that he will put his opinions to the side and it won’t impact his judgments on the case.

He noted he was "surprised" he was summoned to possibly serve on the jury.

When asked about resolving conflicts, the man said both sides need to be heard.

He answered on the questionnaire he had a "neutral" opinion on Chauvin. He adds it would help if Chauvin testified for him to form a more solid opinion either one way or the other. Regarding Floyd, he formed a positive view of him based on press coverage of the case.

He believes protests can be done "without rioting." He says he lives in a suburb and didn’t see anything happening in the area during that time.

Regarding interactions with police, he says he once had someone break into his house and the suspect was never caught. He doesn’t hold any resentment for the police after the fact.

He answered "somewhat agree" to racial minorities no receiving equal treatment in the criminal justice system. He explained, saying when mistakes are made, "most of them tend to be [concerning] Black people."

Regarding Black Lives Matter and Blue Lives Matter, he says "every life should matter and not be disrespected. We all have family to go back to at the end of the day."

2:02 p.m.

Juror No. 78 has been dismissed for cause by the judge. Juror No. 79 is next.

1:15 p.m.

Court has reconvened. Juror No. 78 is being questioned.

The juror in question made a Facebook post that stated "Justice for George Floyd, he died [x] miles from my house." He explained it was a post about his feelings about what happened and their perspective on the lack of accountability with police and city officials.

"Because it dawned on me that I had made statements that are out there. And I did not disclose them. And in all honesty, I should disclose anything that’s publicly out there," he said, regarding why he went back to look at the social media posts.

However, he is willing to put his personal beliefs aside to serve on the jury.

"I’m a very centered person overall… I see this as a job interview for a job I don’t want," he told the judge.

He also shared his thoughts on seeing the settlement news last week.

"So, just the way the city has handled some of the aspects I don’t necessarily agree with. And it didn’t surprise me that the city settled on this case," he said.

The man says he moved to Minnesota "years ago," adding he has children and is part of a church community. He noted he is a stubborn person when asked how he would be able to work with people that may disagree with him.

He notes that he has seen the Floyd video "2 to 3 times."

He told the defense he has issues with seeing the video for multiple reasons but explained "I guess at my core. I do have issues with a police officer, arriving on scene, when a person is already handcuffed there or being a police action, resulting in a person dying."

The potential juror says he still believes the police addressed the situation wrongly. The man stated it would be difficult to "erase everything" and view Chauvin as "purely innocent."

11:50 a.m.

Juror No. 76 has been dismissed. The defense uses a peremptory challenge strike, their 12th used during this process. They have three remaining. The state has four remaining.

The defense is arguing for a challenge for cause because of the juror’s experience with the Minneapolis Police Department and their views on them.

"I felt that his bias was against the Minneapolis Police Department specifically," Nelson said.

State Prosecutor Steve Schleicher said he doesn’t believe that the prospective juror reflecting on his actual life experience reflected any bias against anyone he was "simply reflecting on reality as he sees and perceives it every single day." He also noted he was "disappointed" the juror was struck. He did not see a reason to raise a Batson challenge.

The judge denies the cause challenge from the defense.

The court is in recess until 1:15 p.m.

11:10 a.m.

Juror No. 76 is being questioned now.

He says he saw the news regarding the settlement. The potential juror said he typically "turns the channel" when he sees any news relating to the case. He stated to the judge he is willing to put whatever he has learned to the side to participate in the jury.

The man says he considers himself a quiet person who keeps to himself. He likes to watch basketball, specifically the Chicago Bulls.

He says making the decision whether Chauvin is guilty or not guilty is "a big weight." He noted to the court he has served on a jury before in the early 2000s.

"As a black man, you see a lot of Black people getting killed and no one’s held accountable for it. and you wonder why and what were the decisions. And with this maybe I will be in the room to know why," he said when asked by the defense why he wanted to serve on the jury.

"With my character and who I am, I can do what’s right," he said.

He says he stays off social media. He saw some clips shown on CNN when the incident happened.

"I didn’t form an opinion on Mr. Chauvin because I didn’t know him but it’s sad because it’s another Black man being murdered," he said.

The man says he avoids discussing controversial topics with his wife as they "get into arguments."

He said his brother has been arrested before. He says he had to go to court for the matter and was convicted of the offense. The conviction came after his brother pleaded guilty.

He told attorney Eric Nelson that has a Black man, he has experienced racism in this country "on a daily basis." He adds it would not change anything in how he conducts himself while on a jury. He also stated he used to live in the area where Floyd died.

He shared he has prior military experience.

The potential juror says his wife has sciatica, a medical condition, noting it would be a hardship for him to stay in a hotel with jurors during the trial. It’s unclear if the juror considers it a hardship enough that he couldn’t serve on the jury.

10:54 a.m.

Juror No. 75 has been dismissed for cause.

He said he believes there is discrimination and the media portrays it in a fair way.

10:05 a.m.

After an extended break, Juror No. 75 is being addressed in the court.

The potential juror says he has seen a little of the court live stream to "see what it will look like." He tells the judge he is in between jobs and has been since the pandemic happened. He adds that financial hardship may be a thing if he has to serve for over four weeks on the jury.

The man says he has seen parts of the viral bystander video. He noted he has a "neutral" opinion of Floyd.

The potential juror says he can tell the difference between protests and riots.

9:10 a.m.

Two total jurors have been excused due to their knowledge of the settlement and how it changed their opinion on the case. Seven jurors remain on the jury.

Juror No. 20 and 36 have been excused.

The judge says they will reconvene at 9:25 a.m.

Click here for an updated list of the jury so far.

9:05 a.m.

A second seated juror has now been excused.

Juror No. 20 was excused for cause by Judge Peter Cahill after questioning about the city of Minneapolis’s $27 million settlement with George Floyd’s family.

The jury is now down to seven people.

Jury selection is expected to resume when the questioning of the seated jurors has concluded.

8:55 a.m.

Judge Peter Cahill has excused Juror No. 36 for cause.

The decision was made by the judge while questioning the seven seated jurors over the city of Minneapolis’s $27 million settlement with George Floyd’s family.

The jury is now down to eight people.

Jury selection is expected to resume after 9 a.m. when the questioning of the seated jurors has concluded.

Jury selection for a former Minneapolis police officer’s trial in George Floyd’s death could be headed for a setback.

The process has gone more quickly than expected, but the judge is now recalling seven jurors to see if they have been tainted by news of a $27 million settlement for the Floyd family.

Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill was to question the jurors by video ahead of ordinary jury selection.

The move came at the request of former officer Derek Chauvin’s attorney, Eric Nelson, who called the timing of last week’s settlement announcement by city leaders in the middle of jury selection “profoundly disturbing” and “not fair.”

Nelson has also requested a delay in the trial, which Cahill is considering. Cahill has set opening statements for March 29 at the earliest, but dismissal of some of the jurors already seated could imperil that date.

Nine jurors had been seated through Tuesday, including five who are white, one who is multiracial, two who are Black and one who is Hispanic. The jurors include six men and three women and range in age from their 20s to their 50s. Fourteen people, including two alternates, are needed.

The jurors

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