Court documents showed that Derek Chauffen, a former Minneapolis police officer, asked a city judge for a new trial on Tuesday, two weeks after he was found guilty of 3 counts of murder over the murder of black man George Floyd.
As part of a series of petitions filed with Court Judge Peter Cahill;
Attorney Eric Nelson said that his client was denied a fair trial, adding that there was misconduct on the part of the prosecution and jury and legal errors that occurred during the trial, indicating that the verdict is against the law.
Nelson said the court misused its powers when it did not accept his request for a change of venue for the trial and when the jury was not removed.
He also said that the court misused its powers when it rejected its initial request for a new trial in light of the huge publicity surrounding the original trial, which threatens its integrity.
The day before the jury reaches its verdict,
Judge Cahill strongly criticized Congressman Maxine Waters' statements on the case, saying that she may have provided the defense with grounds for challenging the ruling in the event of a conviction.
Nelson accused Minnesota prosecutors of misconduct when they underestimated the defense, and said the court had let his client down by not compelling Morris Hall - who was in the car with Floyd when the police arrived - to testify.
Prosecutors have not yet responded to petitions calling for a new trial.
Milestone
On April 20, a 12-member jury concluded that Chauvin, 45, was guilty of all three charges brought against him after examining the testimonies of 45 witnesses over a three-week period, including a group of bystanders, police officials and experts in medicine field.
The rare verdict against a police officer marked a milestone in US history, which is full of racial problems and a denunciation of the way law enforcement agencies treated black citizens.
A video clip showed that Chuven - a veteran white police officer - crouched on the neck of Floyd - a 46-year-old black man - and was handcuffed for more than 9 minutes on May 25, 2020. Chauvin and 3 of his fellow officers were They are trying to arrest Floyd on charges of using a counterfeit $ 20 bill to buy cigarettes at a grocery store.
Floyd's death led to protests in the United States and abroad against the police's excessive use of force toward African Americans.
US President Joe Biden also commented on the trial, saying he hoped "this will be the correct verdict."
Besides Chuven, three other police officers involved in the case - Alexander Koenig, Thomas Lane and Tu Tao - face less serious charges, and will be tried separately.