State vs. Chauvin: Court adjourns on Day One, jury to return Tuesday

Tommy Wiita

5 EYEWITNESS NEWS will have team coverage of Derek Chauvin’s trial on-air and online. Here’s how to follow the daily developments:

Watch live video coverage of the trial each day on KSTP.com or the KSTP YouTube page.

KSTP’s full coverage of the trial, and all events leading up to it, can be found at KSTP.com.

You can also follow the latest developments on our KSTP-TV Facebook page and KSTP Twitter feed.

2:50 p.m.

[Courtroom video]

Judge Peter Cahill has adjourned court for the day after sorting through many motions in the trial.

Jury selection is expected to begin Tuesday morning when court reconvenes at 8 a.m. The judge stated it will go on unless the Minnesota Court of Appeals says otherwise.

During the hearing, the defense of Derek Chauvin asked the judge to reconsider his ruling on removing a May 2019 arrest of George Floyd, stating the arrest was relevant to the arrest made in May 2020. The defense argues that the two incidents were similar because Floyd didn’t show his hands in both instances, and had a "large amount of drugs in his mouth."

"He was taken into a squad car. He was then ultimately hospitalized, where he had to be physically restrained by hospital staff," the defense stated, in part, about Floyd’s 2019 arrest.

State prosecutors say the pill fragments found in May 2020 only tested positive for methamphetamine. They also argue Floyd was not restrained the same way he was last year. Cahill allowed the defense to make the argument to include it as supplementary documents but added he "isn’t convinced" of Attorney Eric Nelson’s argument.

In another motion, the defense moved to not use the autopsy conducted by Dr. Michael Baden and Dr. Allecia Wilson, who were hired by Floyd’s family to do an independent autopsy. The defense’s motion asks the court to keep out testimony about medical examinations performed by anyone other than Hennepin County Medical Center’s Dr. Jason Baker.

10:38 a.m.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison has filed a motion with the Minnesota Court of Appeals to keep the trial from proceeding on substantive matters, including jury selection, until the district court regains full jurisdiction in the case.

"The State is fully ready to go to trial, but the trial must be conducted in accordance with the rules and the law," Ellison said in a statement. "Now that Mr. Chauvin has stated his intention to appeal Friday’s Court of Appeals ruling to the Minnesota Supreme Court, as is his right, the district court does not have jurisdiction to conduct jury selection or hear and rule on other substantive matters in the trial. We have filed motion with the Court of Appeals to ensure that justice is pursued properly."

10:10 a.m.

Judge Peter Cahill has ordered the court in recess until 1:30 p.m. and jurors have been sent home for the day. He said he will continue on with the trial unless told otherwise from a higher court.

9:15 a.m.

Judge Peter Cahill says the court will be in recess until 10 a.m. Both sides will reconvene shortly thereafter.

However, jury selection was put on hold and likely won’t begin until Tuesday morning after prosecutors asked the Minnesota Court of Appeals to intervene.

Cahill said he doesn’t have jurisdiction to rule on whether or not the third-degree murder charge can be reinstated against Chauvin.

8:40 a.m.

Judge Peter Cahill heard motions from both sides starting at about 8:15 a.m. Monday.

The bulk of the conversations centered around whether it was appropriate to begin jury selection as scheduled, or wait until the Minnesota Supreme Court rules on an expected appeal on third-degree murder by Derek Chauvin’s attorneys.

State prosecutors argued jury selection should be delayed but Cahill disagreed and said he expected to begin jury selection.

A recess was called until at least 9 a.m.

State vs. Chauvin: Trial begins, background on the case

The trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin — who’s charged in the death of George Floyd — officially begins Monday as jury selection gets underway.

Judge Peter Cahill, who is presiding, has estimated jury selection will take three weeks, with opening statements to follow.

Chauvin is charged with second-degree murder and manslaughter in the May 25 death of George Floyd. Cahill may also reconsider reinstating a third-degree murder charge against Chauvin, after Friday’s ruling by the Minnesota Court of Appeals.

5 EYEWITNESS NEWS will have team coverage of the trial on-air and online. Here’s how to follow the daily developments:

Watch live video coverage of the trial each day on KSTP.com or the KSTP YouTube page.

KSTP’s full coverage of the trial, and all events leading up to it, can be found at KSTP.com.

You can also follow the latest developments on our KSTP-TV Facebook page and KSTP Twitter feed.

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