Judge Refuses to Delay, Move Derek Chauvin Trial Over $27 Million Settlement

A judge on Friday denied a defense request to delay or move the trial of a former Minneapolis police officer charged in George Floyd's death after the announcement of a $27 million settlement for Floyd's family raised concern about a tainted jury. In a separate ruling, Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill said he would allow the jury to hear limited evidence from Floyd's 2019 arrest, but only that pertaining to the cause of Floyd's death in 2020. He acknowledged there are several similarities between the two incidents, including that Floyd swallowed drugs after police confronted him. The rulings were a blow to Derek Chauvin's defense. His attorney, Eric Nelson, had sought to halt or move the trial due to concerns that the settlement announcement had tainted the jury pool. Jury selection was halfway complete last week when the city of Minneapolis unanimously approved the payout to settle a civil lawsuit over Floyd's death. Nelson called the timing of the settlement deeply disturbing and unfair, and said it jeopardized Chauvin's chance for a fair trial. Chauvin is charged with murder and manslaughter. But Cahill, who has called the timing "unfortunate," said he thought a delay would do nothing to stem the problem of pretrial publicity. As for moving the trial, he said there's no place in Minnesota that hasn't been touched by that publicity. Floyd, who was Black, was declared dead May 25 after Chauvin, who is white, pressed his knee on Floyd's neck for about nine minutes while he was handcuffed and pleading that he couldn't breathe. Floyd's death, captured on a widely seen bystander video, set off weeks of sometimes-violent protests across the country and led to a national reckoning on racial justice. Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2TwO8Gm Bloomberg Quicktake brings you live global news and original shows spanning business, technology, politics and culture. Make sense of the stories changing your business and your world. To watch complete coverage on Bloomberg Quicktake 24/7, visit http://www.bloomberg.com/qt/live, or watch on Apple TV, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, Fire TV and Android TV on the Bloomberg app. Have a story to tell? Fill out this survey for a chance to have it featured on Bloomberg Quicktake: https://cor.us/surveys/27AF30 Connect with us on… YouTube:    / bloomberg   Breaking News on YouTube:    / bloombergquicktakenews   Twitter:   / quicktake   Facebook:   / quicktake   Instagram:   / quicktake