Chauvin Trial Judge Denies Change of Venue, Continuance Motions

The Derek Chauvin murder trial is staying in Minneapolis and staying on schedule.

Those are the rulings Friday from Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill on defense motions for a change of venue and continuance in the case against the fired Minneapolis police officer accused of causing the death of George Floyd late last spring.

Cahill weighed both significant options for much of this week in the wake of the $27 million settlement between the city of Minneapolis and Floyd's family. It led to the dismissal of two seated jurors who said it impacted their viewpoints, the Star-Tribune reports.

"I'll be very honest, when it was first brought up by the defense I thought they were overstating it," he said. " … I was a little shocked when we called back the seven of the nine jurors that had been seated and two of them basically said they could not be fair and impartial any longer."

On other motions Friday, Cahill ruled that only portions of the events surrounding Floyd's drug arrest in Minneapolis in May 2019 are admissible in this trial, namely any evidence or testimony that directly relates to his medical condition after having a police officer point a gun at him and taking him into custody.

Not to be admitted from the 2019 arrest, the judge said, is anything about his emotional behavior such as calling out for his mother, something he did in both encounters with police.