An attorney for former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin asked the Minnesota Court of Appeals to overturn all three convictions against Chauvin in the 2020 killing of George Floyd on Wednesday.
Why it matters: After hearing arguments from Chauvin’s attorney and prosecutors on Wednesday, a member of the three-judge panel hearing the appeal said the court will rule on Chauvin’s murder convictions within 90 days, according to the AP.
A Minnesota jury found Chauvin guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the killing of Floyd in April 2021. Judge Peter Cahill sentenced him to 22.5 years in prison in June of that year.
- Floyd, who was black, was killed on May 25, 2020, after Chauvin, who is white, pinned Floyd to the ground with a knee on his neck for 9 1/2 minutes.
- A video of Chauvin keeping his knee on Floyd’s neck as Floyd pleaded that he could not breathe sparked global protests in 2020 against police brutality and racism.
- Chauvin also pleaded guilty to two federal civil rights charges in December 2021 and was sentenced to 21 years in prison on those convictions in July 2022.
The big picture: Chauvin’s attorney, William Morman, told the appeals panel that the convictions against the former police officer should be overturned because legal errors prevented him from getting a fair trial, according to the AP.
- Mohrman argued that Chauvin’s trial should have been held outside of Minneapolis due to concerns about publicity and protests.
- The state, represented by special counsel Neil Katial, argued to the judges that Chauvin received “one of the most transparent and thorough trials in our nation’s history” and said the enormous publicity of Floyd’s death made moving the trial from Minneapolis pointless.
Go deeper: Ex-Minneapolis officer sentenced to 3.5 years on George Floyd charges
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with details throughout.
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