State Motions To Reinstate 3rd Degree Murder Charge For Derek Chauvin, Add For Other 3 Ex-MPD Officers
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- In the wake of a Minnesota Court of Appeals ruling decision, prosecutors are seeking to reinstate third-degree murder charges against not only former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin -- who was previously charged with that offense -- but now also the three other officers involved in the fatal arrest of George Floyd.
Earlier in the week, the appeals court affirmed the third-degree murder conviction of the former Minneapolis police officer who shot and killed Justine Ruszczyk Damond, Mohamed Noor. He was found guilty of third-degree murder and manslaughter in the July 2017 shooting death of Damond and sentenced to 12-and-a-half years in prison.
The appeals court ruled "the evidence at trial was sufficient to establish, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Noor committed third-degree murder ... even though his death-causing act was directed at a single person and the result of a split-second decision." The court also ruled that "because Noor does not establish a violation of his Sixth Amendment right to a public trial or his right to due process, or other trial error, he is not entitled to a new trial."
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As a result of that decision, the state has moved to reinstate the third-degree charge against Chauvin, which had been granted by the court for lack of probable cause because "a third-degree murder charge can be sustained only in situations in which the defendant's actions ... were not specifically directed at the particular person whose death occurred."
The state says, because of the Noor decision, the opposite is true.
Prosecutors say they are requesting the court reinstate the charge and to amend the complaints against officers Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng, and Thomas Lane.
Chauvin is currently charged with second-degree murder and manslaughter, and the other three officers are charged with aiding and abetting murder and manslaughter.