A judge ruled Monday that former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin will be tried separately for his role in George Floyd’s death.
NBC News reports that Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill set jury selection for Chauvin’s trial on March 8. Opening statements will begin no later than March 29.
According to NPR, the judge cited coronavirus restrictions as the reason for separating the trials between Chauvin and the other officers accused of killing Floyd. Prosecutors disagreed with the judge’s ruling.
“We respectfully disagree with the court’s decision to sever three of the defendants from the other and its ruling on the timing of the trials,” Attorney General Keith Ellison said in a statement. “As we argued several months ago, and as the judge agreed in his November ruling, we believe all four defendants should be tried jointly.”
The other three officers involved, Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng, and Tou Thao, will be tried together beginning on August 23.
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