Supreme Court rejects Derek Chauvin's appeal in killing George Floyd

20 November 2023 , 15:48

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George Floyd, a Black man, died on May 25, 2020, when Chauvin, a white police officer, knelt on his neck for 9 1/2 minutes

The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who sought to overturn his conviction for second-degree murder in the tragic killing of George Floyd. The high court upheld the state court rulings that affirmed Chauvin's guilt and his 22 1/2-year prison sentence.

Chauvin's defence had contended that their client was denied a fair trial in 2021 due to pervasive pretrial publicity and concerns regarding potential violence if he were to be acquitted. However, the Supreme Court's decision maintains the outcome of the initial trial.

George Floyd, a Black man, died on May 25, 2020, when Chauvin, a white police officer, knelt on his neck for 9 1/2 minutes outside a convenience store. The incident, captured on a bystander's video, revealed Floyd's distressing pleas of "I can't breathe." Chauvin is now serving a 21-year sentence at a federal prison in Arizona.

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Floyd's death prompted widespread protests globally, some of which turned violent, and triggered a broader conversation on issues of police brutality and racism that continue to unfold.

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Meanwhile, Chauvin is also making another attempt to overturn his federal civil rights conviction, saying new evidence shows that he didn’t cause Floyd’s death. In a motion filed in federal court Monday, November 13, Chauvin said he never would have pleaded guilty to the charge in 2021 if he had known about the theories of a Kansas pathologist with whom he began corresponding in February.

Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin addresses the court (AP)

Chauvin is asking the judge who presided over his trial to throw out his conviction and order a new trial, or at least an evidentiary hearing. The request was filed without a lawyer. He says Dr. William Schaetzel, of Topeka, Kansas, told him that he believes Floyd died not from asphyxia from Chauvin’s actions, but from complications of a rare tumour called a paraganglioma that can cause a fatal surge of adrenaline. The pathologist did not examine Floyd’s body but reviewed autopsy reports.

Schaetzel told The Associated Press: "I can’t go to my grave with what I know." He explained why he reached out to Chauvin and went on to say, “I just want the truth.”

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Derek Chauvin sought to overturn his conviction for second-degree murder in the killing of George Floyd

Chauvin further alleges that Schaetzel reached out to his trial attorney, Eric Nelson, in 2021, as well as the judge and prosecution in his state-court murder trial, but that Nelson never told him about the pathologist or his ideas. He also alleges that Nelson failed to challenge the constitutionality of the federal charge.

But Chauvin claims in his motion that no jury would have convicted him if it had heard the pathologist’s evidence Nelson declined to comment Monday. When Chauvin pleaded guilty to the federal charge in December 2021, he waived his rights to appeal except on the basis of a claim of ineffective counsel.

A federal appeals court has rejected Chauvin’s requests for a rehearing twice. Three other former officers who were at the scene received lesser state and federal sentences for their roles in Floyd’s death.

Vassia Barba