George Floyd Case: Minneapolis Officers Will Have One Joint Trial

A Minneapolis judge on Thursday rejected a defense request for a change of venue in the trial of four former Minneapolis police officers charged in George Floyd's death.

Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill also ruled that the former police officers will be tried at the same time in the county on Mar. 8 for charges stemming from Floyd's death.

Cahill said that the officers’ defenses are “mutually supportive.”

“All Defendants contend they were authorized in using force because Floyd was resisting their demands to take a seat in the squad car for transport to the Jail for booking and that the force they used was reasonable," he wrote. "In addition, all Defendants contend that Floyd’s death resulted from his underlying medical conditions, heart disease, and hypertension acting in combination with several drugs found in his system post-mortem and was not caused by their actions in subduing and restraining him.”

Defense lawyers argued that publicity surrounding the high-profile case would prevent the officers from getting a fair trial and they raised safety concerns for the defendants and potential witnesses.

Cahill declined to move the trial but said he would reconsider a move if needed. He ruled that holding a single proceeding for the four officers would ensure that jurors understand "all of the evidence and the complete picture of Floyd's death."

"And it would allow this community, this State, and the nation to absorb the verdicts for the four Defendants at once," Cahill wrote in the ruling.

The judge also granted the request to allow cameras in the courtroom. The identities of the jurors will not be announced publicly and the panel will be partially isolated.

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing Floyd’s family, issued a statement praising Cahill’s rulings.

"Trying these officers together will give the jury a complete picture of what happened on the day that George was murdered," the statement said. "Each of these men played a role that ultimately led to his death -- whether it was a knee to the neck or denying any intervention as George and onlookers begged for his life."

Former officer Derek Chauvin faces charges of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter in Floyd's May 25 death.

Videos of the incident show Chauvin kneeling on Floyd's neck for almost nine minutes. Floyd had told Chauvin and three other officers that he couldn't breathe.