Judge denies new trial for Chauvin

A Minnesota judge has denied former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin’s request for a new trial in the murder of George Floyd.

In a two-page order on Thursday, Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill said that Chauvin “failed to demonstrate that the Court abused its discretion or committed error such as Defendant was deprived of his constitutional right.”

The decision came a day before Chauvin is scheduled to be sentenced after being found guilty of murder and manslaughter charges in April for kneeling on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes, resulting in his death.

Chauvin’s attorneys asked for a new trial about a month after his conviction, arguing that juror misconduct and pretrial publicity led to the officer’s conviction.

Chauvin’s legal team further argued the court abused its discretion when it denied a request to move the hearing’s venue outside of Minneapolis.

The former Minneapolis police officer was found guilty of second- and third-degree murder, as well as second-degree manslaughter in Floyd’s death, which sparked demonstrations against police brutality across the country.

Chauvin will only be sentenced on Friday for the most serious charge against him, which is second-degree murder.

The maximum sentence for the charge is 40 years in prison, but many expect Chauvin to be sentenced to a term close to 12.5 years because he has no criminal record.