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April 20th, 2021 
Awake Goy 
Derek Chauvin refuses to testify in George Floyd murder trial
The jury is now deliberating in the murder trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, after the prosecution and defence delivered their closing arguments on Monday.
Mr Chauvin is currently standing trial for the murder of unarmed Black man George Floyd, who died in the former Minneapolis police officer’s custody last May after he knelt on his neck for close to nine minutes.
Following weeks of testimony from both sides, the prosecution and defence ended their closing arguments on Monday, with Prosecutor Steve Schleicher urging jurors to “believe your eyes” as defence attorney Eric Nelson said that the state failed to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr Chauvin murdered Mr Floyd.
The court is now in recess until the jury reaches a verdict, which could take just a few hours or up to several weeks.
Following both sides resting their cases on Thursday, Judge Peter Cahill told jurors to prepare for a lengthy deliberation process, telling them: “If I were you, I would plan for long and hope for short.”
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Meanwhile, Minneapolis is bracing for the verdict, with the National Guard stationed and the areas around the Hennepin County Courthouse boarded up, as protests are expected if Mr Chauvin is acquitted.
Minneapolis schools will also move to distance-learning from Wednesday in preparation for any possible disruptions in the city caused by the trial.
The verdict comes amid recent protests in the city relating to the fatal shooting of 20-year-old Black Man Daunte Wright, who was killed by a police officer during a traffic stop last week.
Protesters demonstrated outside in Minneapolis following the end of closing arguments, as they called for an end of police violence against Black Americans.
Read The Independent’s updates and analysis below.
Protests in Minneapolis following closing arguments
Hundreds of protesters marched through the streets of downtown Minneapolis on Monday night as jurors deliberated the charges faced by former police officer Derek Chauvin.
Mr Chauvin is currently standing trial for the murder of unarmed Black man George Floyd, who died in the former Minneapolis police officer’s custody last May after he knelt on his neck for close to nine minutes.
Following closing arguments on Monday, the jurors have been sequestered away from the outside world to decide on a verdict, which could take just a few hours or up to several weeks.
Civil rights leaders Rev Jesse Jackson and Rev Al Sharpton joined protesters as they called for justice for George Floyd.
James Crump20 April 2021 12:45
Derek Chauvin defence team seeks mistrial – but judge rules it out
The judge overseeing the trial of Derek Chauvin said “abhorrent” comments from Congresswoman Maxine Waters could lead to the trial being overturned on appeal, throwing any verdict in the case of George Floyd’s death into doubt.
The Democratic Congresswoman travelled across state lines to tell protestors in Brooklyn Centre they needed to “get more confrontational” if Mr Chauvin is not convicted of first-degree murder, despite the court hearing only the lesser charges of unintentional murder and manslaughter.
Judge Peter Cahill said he was aware of the congresswoman saying anything less than a murder conviction was unacceptable, “and talk about being more confrontational”, which could result in the entire trial being thrown out.
“I’ll give you that Congresswoman Waters may have given you something on appeal, that may result in this whole trial being overturned,” Mr Cahill said.
“This goes back to what I’ve been saying from the beginning, I wish elected officials would stop talking about this case, especially in a manner that is disrespectful to the rule of law and the judicial branch and our function,” he added.
Mr Cahill said while the failure of elected officials to be respectful to the court was “abhorrent”, he did not think her comments prejudiced the jury enough to grant the defence’s motion for a mistrial.
Read Justin Vallejo’s full report here:
James Crump20 April 2021 12:15
Derek Chauvin trial: When will we have a verdict?
The trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer accused of murdering George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, last May, is nearing its end.
Following closing arguments on Monday, the jurors have been sequestered away from the outside world to decide on a verdict, which could take just a few hours or up to several weeks.
There is a large amount of witness testimony and evidence for the jurors to consider and it is unclear how long it will take the jury to announce a decision. Predicting the length of jury deliberations is difficult.
But when should we expect a verdict?
James Crump20 April 2021 11:45
Court in recess as jury deliberates
Following weeks of testimony from both sides, the prosecution and defence ended their closing arguments on Monday, with Prosecutor Steve Schleicher urging jurors to “believe your eyes” as defence attorney Eric Nelson said that the state failed to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr Chauvin murdered Mr Floyd.
The court is now in recess until the jury reaches a verdict, which could take just a few hours or up to several weeks.
Following both sides resting their cases on Thursday, Judge Peter Cahill told jurors to prepare for a lengthy deliberation process, telling them: “If I were you, I would plan for long and hope for short.”
James Crump20 April 2021 11:15
Welcome toThe Independent’s rolling coverage of the Derek Chauvin murder trial in Minneapolis, as the jury is deliberating the verdict following closing arguments on Monday.
James Crump20 April 2021 10:56
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