It is widely reported Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has been found guilty on all three charges in the death in custody of George Floyd. I haven’t heard the evidence and have no opinion on the verdict.
The President, the Governor, the Mayor and Congresswoman Waters spoke publicly in in favor of a guilty verdict. Combined with near-universal fear of rioting and bloodshed in the event of an innocent verdict, it seems the chance of the accused getting a fair trial in Minneapolis or elsewhere in MN was near-zero.
Plus the prosecution had a platoon of skilled lawyers, including the MN Attorney General, while the accused had one, lone defense attorney. And the accused’s own bosses threw him under the bus.
I’d guess those outraged at Floyd’s death are happy with the verdict. Those concerned with law and order in this country, and with effective policing, probably view the process by which the verdict was achieved as seriously flawed and deleterious to good order.
