Trial to proceed for 4 former officers in death of George Floyd, judge drops 3rd-degree murder charge against Chauvin
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Thursday, a judge has ruled that trial will proceed for the four former Minneapolis police officers charged in the death of George Floyd and he has also dismissed one of the charges against former officer Derek Chauvin.
According to court documents, the judge dropped the third-degree murder charge filed against Chauvin but kept the second-degree murder charge. The dismissal of the dropped charge will stay for five days to allow the state to appeal.
KSTP’s Eric Chaloux reports Chauvin’s attorney Eric Nelson had no comment on the judge’s action.
The court document also stated that the judge will not dismiss aiding and abetting charges against the other three former Minneapolis police officers in the death of George Floyd. Therefore, all three motions of dismissal for Tou Thao, Thomas Lane and Alexander Kueng were denied.
Presiding judge in Floyd case to take up key motions on evidence, charges
From left: Derek Chauvin, J Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao.[Hennepin County Jail]
The three former officers asked for separate trials but the motion for the request has not been confirmed by the judge.
The trials will resume in March.
In a statement, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison responded to the ruling, stating, "The court has sustained eight out of nine charges against the defendants in the murder of George Floyd, including the most serious charges against all four defendants. This means that all four defendants will stand trial for murder and manslaughter, both in the second degree. This is an important, positive step forward in the path toward justice for George Floyd, his family, our community, and Minnesota. We look forward to presenting the prosecution’s case to a jury in Hennepin County."
Gov. Tim Walz also responded via social media, saying the ruling is an "important step forward toward justice for George Floyd."
BREAKING: Judge upholds murder charges against Derek Chauvin and other officers. Important step toward justice for George Floyd.
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) October 22, 2020
Attorney Ben Crump, who is representing Floyd’s family, issued the following statement:
"We are gratified that the court preserved eight of the nine charges against Derek Chauvin, including the more serious second-degree murder charge for which we expect a conviction, based on the clear and evident use of excessive force that we all saw on video. We will continue to fight for justice in the civil courts and will advocate both for justice in the criminal system and for meaningful police reforms. The family of George Floyd has confidence that Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison will make sure that the officers are held accountable to the full extent of the law based on the evidence that we witnessed on that video tape."
Stay with 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS and KSTP.com for updates on this developing news.