Derek Chauvin Trial, Day 9 Live Updates: 12th Juror Seated, Major Decisions To Come Friday
UPDATE (4:30 p.m.): Potential juror No. 95 was excused by Judge Peter Cahill based on their exposure to the $27 million settlement between the city of Minneapolis and George Floyd's family, as well as security concerns the potential juror raised.
Before court was adjourned for the day, the state addressed the court about concerns over the defense's references to a press conference held by Minneapolis city officials in which the settlement was referenced.
"I can't expect Mr. Nelson to step out of this hearing to file a motion," Cahill said in response. "He has the right to bring this up."
"I have asked Minneapolis to stop talking about this," Cahill added. "Everyone stop talking about it."
UPDATE (4:00 p.m.): Twelve jurors have now been seated in the Derek Chauvin trial.
Potential juror No. 92, a white woman in her 40s, was the third juror seated Thursday. She described herself as "family-oriented" and indicated she had favorable views of both Black Lives Matter and Blue Lives Matter.
Two alternates still need to be selected.
UPDATE (3:14 p.m.): Jury selection continues with 11 jurors seated so far. Judge is questioning potential juror No. 92.
UPDATE (2:50 p.m.): State passes for cause and potential juror No. 91 has been selected as the 11th juror seated in the Derek Chauvin trial. Court needs one more juror and two more alternates.
UPDATE (2:46 p.m.): State begins questioning potential juror No. 91. No. 91 says she used to live in the general area of 38th and Chicago 20 to 30 years ago.
UPDATE (2:15 p.m.): Potential juror No. 91 is being questioned by defense. She says she's a grandmother and loves spending times with her grandchildren.
She said she was excited to do her civil duty when she received her summons. She said her only concern with trial was COVID-19, but she's now vaccinated and has no concerns.
UPDATE (2 p.m.): Judge Cahill gives instructions to more potential jurors. Begins questioning potential juror No. 91.
No. 91 said they heard of the settlement for George Floyd's family and the dollar amount, but not much else. No. 91 said they believe they can put thoughts of the settlement aside and be impartial.
No. 91 said it would be a challenge to be a juror, but that they would make it work.
UPDATE (1:50 p.m.): Potential juror No. 90 has been excused by the judge for cause.
UPDATE (1:40 p.m.): Defense questioning why potential juror No. 90 in the questionnaire said police "accosted" George Floyd in their initial interaction with him. No. 90 is unsure why the term was used when filled out, but agrees it implies an evil intent by Derek Chauvin.
UPDATE (1:15 p.m.): Potential juror No. 90 is being questioned. No. 90 is an IT systems administrator who likes table top games, and says they can be impartial.
Judge briefly turns off audio for personal questions.
No. 90 is concerned about his safety in regards to what the results of trial would bring. Says that identities are stored somewhere electronically.
UPDATE (12:15 p.m.): Potential juror No. 89 is the 10th juror seated in the Derek Chauvin trial. The court now needs to seat two more jurors and two alternates.
The 10th juror is a white woman in her 50s who lives in the suburbs and works as a cardiac care nurse. Both the state and the prosecution asked several questions about her work and whether or not she would be able to put her work experience aside while being a juror. She insisted that she could.
The juror said that she's seen clips of the bystander video of George Floyd's arrest. She also told the court that she thinks that discrimination is more widespread than depicted in the media and that minorities are not treated equally under the law.
In the questionnaire, the 10th juror reported a "somewhat favorable" view of Black Lives Matter and a "somewhat unfavorable" view of Blue Lives Matter. She doesn't support defunding the Minneapolis Police Department.
As it stands currently, the jury is composed of five men and five women. Five of the jurors are people of color or mixed race, and five are white.
UPDATE (10:37 a.m.): Potential juror No. 88 in the Derek Chauvin trial is excused from service. She was the third person to be excused Thursday morning.
In court, the potential juror said she had heard about the City of Minneapolis' settlement with the family of George Floyd. While she didn't know the exact amount, she knew it was "in the millions."
The potential juror told Judge Peter Cahill that she believed she could still be impartial. However, after questioning that was not allowed to be heard by the public, she was excused from duty.
The judge later explained that the potential juror as an acquaintance of an essential witness.
UPDATE (10:14 a.m.): The state uses a strike to remove potential juror No. 87 from the trial of Derek Chauvin.
The potential juror described herself as a mother of five children. She had not seen any video of George Floyd's arrest, only a still image. She reported having a negative view of Floyd and Black Lives Matter.
The prosecution was granted an extra strike on Wednesday. They have four strikes remaining.
UPDATE (9:21 a.m.): Potential juror No. 86 is removed for cause.
She told the court that she'd overheard her friends and family talk about the City of Minneapolis' $27 million settlement with the family of George Floyd. The potential juror reported that the settlement made her view of Derek Chauvin a bit more negative than it already was.
Judge Peter Cahill excused her for cause.
UPDATE (9:05 a.m.): Judge Peter Cahill says a decision on whether or not evidence from George Floyd's arrest in May of 2019 will be allowed in court will be made Friday.
Already, two other major decisions in the case are set to be made Friday. The judge said he would decide on the defense's motions to delay the trial and to move it out of Minneapolis. His decisions on these matters could be influenced by how jury selection proceeds on Thursday.
The defense's motions for a continuance and a change of venue stemmed from concerns over pretrial publicity due to the City of Minneapolis' $27 million settlement with the family of George Floyd.
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- After some setbacks this week, the jury selection process is back on track in the trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer accused of murdering George Floyd.
Court will resume Thursday at 8:30 a.m. Judge Peter Cahill is expected to begin by addressing the defense's request to allow evidence of Floyd's 2019 arrest to be presented during the trial. After that, jury selection will continue.
Previously, Cahill had decided that Floyd's 2019 arrest was irrelevant to the case. However, after the defense found chewed-up pills with Floyd's DNA on them in the squad car that he was placed in last May, the defense argued that it showed that Floyd had a pattern of ingesting drugs when arrested.
Cahill said that he will decide on whether or not to allow some, all, or none of the evidence from the 2019 arrest to be presented during trial.
WATCH: Follow The Derek Chauvin Trial On CBSN Minnesota
On Wednesday, the court re-questioned the seven jurors who were seated last week following the announcement of the $27 million civil settlement between the City of Minneapolis and Floyd's family. Two of the seated jurors were excused from duty after reporting that they'd inadvertently heard about the settlement and saying that they felt it'd affect their ability to be impartial.
Yet, two more jurors were seated during jury selection Wednesday. They were a mixed race woman in her 40s who works as a management consultant and a Black man in his 40s who works in management and moved to Minnesota 19 years ago.
The seatings on Wednesday came following a day where no jurors were seated. Every potential juror questioned Tuesday was either excused for cause or struck from the pool.
RELATED: Jury Count Returns To 9 After 2 Previously Seated Jurors Were Excused
The jury count currently stands at nine. The jury is made up of five men and four women; five of the jurors are people of color or mixed-race, and four are white.
The court still needs to seat three jurors and two alternates. Jury selection is scheduled to continue through next week, giving the court six days to seat the jury. Opening arguments are slated to start on March 29.
During proceedings Thursday, the judge will be considering the defense's requests earlier this week stemming from concerns over pretrial publicity due to the timing of the city's payout to Floyd's family. Chauvin's attorney, Eric Nelson, motioned for a delay in the trial and moving it out of Minneapolis.
Cahill told the court that he will address those requests on Friday.
Defense attorney Joe Tamburino, who is not affiliated with the case, says he expects more jurors to be seated Thursday.
"It just feels like something's gonna move," he said, adding that it was good that the judge took extra time to consider the defense's motions.
TIMELINE: George Floyd's Death, Unrest In Minneapolis And The Derek Chauvin Case
Chauvin is facing charges of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and manslaughter in Floyd's death. Three other former Minneapolis police officers are also charged with aiding and abetting. They are scheduled to stand trial in March.
Floyd, a Black man, died on May 25 after being arrested outside a south Minneapolis convenience store. Bystander video of the arrest showed Chauvin, who is white, kneeling on Floyd's neck for several minutes as he lay prone, handcuffed and pleading for air.
The video sparked days of unrest in the Twin Cities and a nationwide reckoning with racial inequity and police brutality.
