MN - George Floyd, 46, died in police custody, Minneapolis, 25 May 2020 *officers charged* #3

[JerseyGirl]

Minneapolis officer calls for charges to be dropped in George Floyd case

An attorney for former officer Thomas Lane, who was one of the officers who witnessed Chauvin kneel on Floyd's neck, filed a reply on Monday to prosecutors' defense of the charges that were brought against Lane, Chauvin and two other officers.

“Officer Lane did nothing wrong,” attorney Earl Gray wrote.

Gray had previously submitted a filing in July asking the court to throw out the charges against Lane because they were legally deficient, according to the Star Tribune.

This time around, Lane's lawyer played hardball, evoking Floyd's past crimes and his struggles with substance abuse.

“With this background in mind, the State’s suggestion that Officer Lane was required somehow to believe Mr. Floyd’s denial of culpability invites an adventure into Pollyana [sic] land,” Gray wrote.

Gray in the filing on Monday argued that the autopsy showed no tissue damage in Floyd's neck, saying that the pressure that e applied on Floyd's neck was not lethal.

 

[sds71]

Thomas Lane admits he didn't look at 'fake' $20 bill George Floyd was accused of using | Daily Mail Online

 

[JerseyGirl]

George Floyd mural in Minneapolis defaced with black paint

*sigh*

 

[Niner]

Who Is Judge Peter Cahill, Who Will Oversee Case Of Four Ex-MPD Officers Charged In George Floyd's Death?

 

[JerseyGirl]

Gov. Evers compares Kenosha shooting to deaths of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd

In a statement Sunday night, Gov. Tony Evers confirmed the reports that the Black man shot Sunday afternoon by police in Kenosha was Jacob Blake.

Evers likened the shooting to the officer-involved deaths of Breonna Taylor in Louisville and George Floyd in Minneapolis; both of those killings have sparked massive international protests. The officers involved in Floyd's death face criminal charges.

 

[JerseyGirl]

Attorney for ex-officer plans overdose defense in Floyd case

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, a lawyer for Lane laid out what he said would be a central argument for the defense.

“None of these guys — even Chauvin — actually killed him,” said the attorney, Earl Gray. “He killed himself.”

Free to speak publicly since a judge lifted a gag order on all parties in the case, Gray said he plans to argue that Floyd died from an overdose of the powerful opioid fentanyl and an underlying heart condition.

“We are going to show that my client and the other cops were doing their jobs,” he said.

The veteran criminal defense attorney said he will base his case on toxicology and autopsy reports as well as recently released police body camera footage that offers a fuller picture than the cellphone videos taken by people on the street.

The body camera videos show that well before Floyd was pinned to the ground, he told the officers at least six times: “I can’t breathe.”

 

[Waller]

Gray is right: they didn't kill anybody...
I hope their defence team will be able to avoid conviction for these guys.
It would be outrageous

 

[JerseyGirl]

Prosecutors say ‘more than sufficient’ evidence shows ex-cop Tou Thao complicit in George Floyd’s death

Minnesota’s attorney general’s office said the evidence is “more than sufficient” to support the felony charges of aiding and abetting second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter filed against ex-cop Tou Thao in connection with Floyd’s May 25 homicide.

In their original complaint, prosecutors said Thao retrieved a “hobble restraint” from a squad car to subdue Floyd during the arrest, but it wasn’t used.

They said Thao “looked directly at how Chauvin was restraining Mr. Floyd, with Chauvin’s knee on Floyd’s neck area.”

“(Thao) then became concerned about a number of citizens who had gathered and were watching the officers subdue Mr. Floyd, and potential traffic concerns, and so (he) stood between those citizens and the three officers restraining Mr. Floyd,” the complaint states.

“When one citizen stepped off the curb, imploring Chauvin to get off of Mr. Floyd, (Thao) put his hands on the citizen to keep him back,” it reads.

Thao is facing the same charges as the two officers – J. Kueng and Thomas Lane – who restrained Floyd alongside Chauvin.

__

Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill has set a Sept. 11 hearing to hear motions. @Niner

 

[Niner]

Thanks for the tag @JerseyGirl! I have them all there on 9/11 for their hearings. Chauvin has a tax related matter hearing on 9/8.

 

[JerseyGirl]

Attorney for former police officer requests change of venue for George Floyd trial

The motion, filed by defense attorney Thomas Plunkett Thursday afternoon in Hennepin County District Court on behalf of J Alexander Kueng, cites the possible dissemination of pre-trial, prejudicial material by the prosecution to the public as reason to move the upcoming trial out of the Minneapolis metro area.

Plunkett also cites the media coverage of Floyd’s murder being shaped by public statements from state officials in his filing.

Plunkett will deliver an oral argument for the motion during a hearing in September.

 

[sds71]

[URL='https://twitter.com/webster']@webster

Prosecution files a notice they'll seek upward departure—a higher sentence—in prosecution of Derek Chauvin, citing to George Floyd being already handcuffed, his pleas that he could not breathe, Chauvin's position of authority, and the presence of children:
[/URL]
http://mncourts.gov/mncourtsgov/media/High-Profile-Cases/27-CR-20-12646/NoticebyAttorney08282020.pdf

 

[Niner]

Stearns County Mentioned as Trial Location

August 28, 2020
(KNSI) - The trial for one of four former Minneapolis police officers charged in the death of George Floyd could be held in Stearns County.Attorney Tom Plunkett filed a motion for a change of venue for his client, J. Kueng, mentioning Stearns County as a potential location. Plunkett claims potentially prejudicial information released by prosecutors has stripped his client's rights to a fair trial.

 

[LadyL]

New court docs say George Floyd had "fatal level" of fentanyl in his system | wusa9.com

 

[Jax49]

New court docs say George Floyd had "fatal level" of fentanyl in his system | wusa9.com

From the article:

Dr. Stephen Nelson, chairman of Florida's medical examiners commission, who is not affiliated with the case, reviewed the new files and says that doesn't mean the drugs or health condition is what caused Floyd's death.

"We've all had cases where those kinds of of levels come into play. You've got to look at the whole picture," Nelson said. "It's one thing to die *with* something. It's another thing to die *from* something."

bbm

 

[Rocco]

Since Fentanyl causes respiratory depression, it's understandable that he was having trouble breathing. The remedy for that wouldn't be putting a knee on his neck for 8 minutes.

The Fentanyl may have ultimately caused his death but we'll never know since Derrick Chauvin killed him first.

The defense attorney is just doing his job but this case is about what Derrick Chauvin did---we've all seen it.

 

[LadyL]

Since Fentanyl causes respiratory depression, it's understandable that he was having trouble breathing. The remedy for that wouldn't be putting a knee on his neck for 8 minutes.

The Fentanyl may have ultimately caused his death but we'll never know since Derrick Chauvin killed him first.

The defense attorney is just doing his job but this case is about what Derrick Chauvin did---we've all seen it.

I agree but we need to have all the facts before deciding a case.

 

[JerseyGirl]

Kendall Talks Potential of Floyd Trial Moving to Stearns Co.

Late last week the attorney for one of the former Minneapolis officers, J. Alexander Keung, charged with killing George Floyd asked for a change of venue for the trial and specifically mentioned Stearns County as an option.

Additionally, the Hennepin County prosecutors have filed a motion to combine all four defendants into one trial.

Stearns County Attorney Janelle Kendall says the Hennepin County Judge is currently considering both motions.

The next hearing in the case is scheduled for September 11th and Kendall believes the judge will make a decision on the venue relatively quickly.

The trial must be held in Minnesota and it has to be in a place where the jury pool would be similar to what they'd get in Hennepin County. If the trial is moved to another county all costs associated with the trial will be paid by Hennepin County.

Right now the trial, or trials, are set to begin in early March. Kendall says there could be one joint trial that stays in Hennepin County or moved outside of the metro area. Or, there could be four separate trials, which could potentially be in four separate locations.

 

[Rocco]

I agree but we need to have all the facts before deciding a case.

Absolutely, but in this case, I think the back round of what happened prior to what Chauvin did to GF for 8 minutes, isn't going to be helpful to Chauvin's defense. It's not like GF has just killed someone, raped someone, assaulted a child, or was fighting with the police in an attempt to take their weapon or overpower them. It's not like the Fentanyl gave him super strength to fight with the cops, if anything, it made him drowsy.
So how will the defense try to justify what Chauvin did? I guess trying to say the Fentanyl killed him and not Chauvin, is all they have to grasp at. But like I mentioned, all the prosecution has to say is ''We don't know for sure that the Fentanyl would have killed him, but we do know that Derrick Chauvin killed him---it was taped and there are witnesses''.

He's toast IMO.

 

[LadyL]

Absolutely, but in this case, I think the back round of what happened prior to what Chauvin did to GF for 8 minutes, isn't going to be helpful to Chauvin's defense. It's not like GF has just killed someone, raped someone, assaulted a child, or was fighting with the police in an attempt to take their weapon or overpower them. It's not like the Fentanyl gave him super strength to fight with the cops, if anything, it made him drowsy.
So how will the defense try to justify what Chauvin did? I guess trying to say the Fentanyl killed him and not Chauvin, is all they have to grasp at. But like I mentioned, all the prosecution has to say is ''We don't know for sure that the Fentanyl would have killed him, but we do know that Derrick Chauvin killed him---it was taped and there are witnesses''.

He's toast IMO.

I agree he needs to be held accountable. I'm curious what you think about the other three's responsibility?

 

[Clair Louise]

I cannot understand what holding him down on the ground for that amount of time when he had already been handcuffed was meant to do. Render him unconscious? When were they planning on standing him up? How did they think this would end?