The city of Minneapolis's decision to pay the family of George Floyd $27 million has derailed the criminal case against former police officer Derek Chauvin as a judge on Tuesday dismissed two jurors whose impartiality came into question.
Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill said Wednesday morning that only five of the seven selected jurors could continue sitting for the murder trial after reviewing an updated questionnaire.
DEATH AND 'AUTONOMOUS ZONE' GRIP GEORGE FLOYD SQUARE AHEAD OF CHAUVIN TRIAL
Of concern was whether the Minneapolis government's decision to settle a wrongful death lawsuit with the Floyd family would affect the jurors' ability to give a fair analysis of Chauvin's alleged guilt. The $27 million figure was the largest in city history.
Cahill expressed frustration with the government's behavior during the trial at the start of the week.
"I wish city officials would stop talking about this case so much,” he told the court.
Chauvin's attorney, Eric Nelson, filed a request for a new trial venue and a delay. Previous efforts to hold Chauvin's case in a more neutral location had been denied by the court.
“The fact that this came in the exact middle of jury selection, it’s perplexing to me,” Nelson told Cahill on Monday. “Whose idea was it to release this information?"
Cahill has yet to rule on Nelson's requests, although he called the city's conduct "concerning." A decision on a trial delay or a changed location altogether could come Thursday.
"It's not just enough for America to say that George Floyd's life matters. We have to show that George Floyd matters by our actions," Benjamin Crump, an attorney representing Floyd's family members, said Friday on news of the settlement.
One dismissed juror, known as Juror No. 4, is a white man who said he watched the video of Floyd's death and that he was concerned about people being "treated differently due to their color." He added that he felt positive sentiments toward Black Lives Matter.
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The second juror, Juror No. 6, is a Hispanic man who, at one point, said that he felt Chauvin was "showing off his authority" by placing his knee on Floyd's neck. However, he also said that he believed Floyd would be alive today if he complied with the police officers' orders.
On Tuesday, Chauvin's attorney submitted a motion to allow evidence of Floyd's arrest by Minneapolis police in 2019. Cahill previously ruled the incident inadmissible, though he appeared willing to change his mind after hearing new arguments from Nelson.
