A Couple Of Thoughts And Amber Guyer Loses Appeal

Thanks for this post. I heard that Guyer filed an appeal, but I did not know the appellate court’s decision. Thanks for informing us.

Regarding the release of the personal and private information of jurors who convicted Chavin’, there is absolutely no logical reason for the court to unseal that information. If any juror wanted to talk to the media, they would have reached out to them already.

Filosofa's Word

You may remember the killing of a Black man, Botham Jean on September 6^th, 2018, but in case you’ve forgotten, allow me to refresh your memory.

Mr. Jean, a college graduate and an accountant, was sitting in his living room on the 4^th floor of his apartment building watching television and eating ice cream on that fateful evening.  Dallas police officer Amber Guyger was off duty and returning home from her shift.  Her apartment was one floor below Mr. Jean’s, on the third floor, but she somehow mistakenly went to the 4^th floor and allegedly believed Mr. Jean’s apartment was her own.  She claims that his door was ajar, she assumed there was a burglar inside, and when she entered and saw him sitting there, she shot him dead.  When she called police, the dispatcher asked for her location, and she had to go look at…

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Derek Chauvin Motions For New Trial

Minneapolis ex-cop Derek Chauvin was convicted of 2nd degree murder, 3rd degree murder, and 2nd degree manslaughter for killing George Floyd.  On April 30, 2021, state prosecutors and Chauvin’s defense attorney argued in separate filings whether certain conditions should be considered in Chauvin’s sentencing.  The prosecution’s filing argues 5 aggravated factors for consideration.  Chauvin is scheduled to be sentenced on June 16 or 25, 2021, depending on what source you read.   Chavin’s opposition for aggravating sentencing factors is linked here.

On May 4, 2021, Chauvin’s defense attorney filed a motion for a new trial.  The motion is linked here.

I noticed on Twitter that some of Chauvin’s supporters represent the motion is for a mistrial or dismissal, and their presentation is focused on a juror attending a protest.   Chauvin’s motion is for a new trial — a do-over.  According to the Minnesota Rules for Criminal Procedure, Post Verdict Motions;

“A motion for new trial must be based on the record. Pertinent facts that are not in the record may be submitted by affidavit, or statements signed under penalty of perjury pursuant to Minnesota Statutes, …”

To get the court to consider the juror, Chauvin must produce affidavits, or statements signed under penalty of perjury.  If I remember my teachings correctly, it cannot be hearsay.  In other words, the statement must come from the juror or someone with direct knowledge that the juror was biased against Chavin and dishonest in his juror questionnaire.  It must be signed under penalty of perjury.  I do not think that a video of the juror and a photo taken from social media will substitute for sworn testimony.   Of course, this is too long to put in a tweet.  Anyway, we shall see what the court decides.

Stay safe.  Wear a mask when out in public.  Get vaccinated for Covid-19.  Be blessed.

 

Verdict: Derek Chauvin Guilty For The Murder of George Floyd

There was a time when I followed trials and posted daily on this blog the videos or reports of what happened in court.  Although I still follow trials, I’m no longer able to write daily posts. 

I watched former Minneapolis, MN police officer Derek Chauvin’s trial.  When I was unable to watch live, I recorded it and watched in the evening.   The two most impressive witnesses for the prosecution, in my opinion, were George Floyd’s girlfriend Courtney Ross, and pulmonary expert Dr. Martin Tobin. 

Courtney Ross extinguished all demonizing of George’s opiate addiction.  Dr. Tobin calmly explained how George died, even pointing out when his brain stopped receiving oxygen and his body went into seizure. 

In this case, Derek Chauvin was held accountable for his decisions and actions that caused the death of George Floyd.  As his eyes darted back and forth, up and down, Chauvin heard verdicts on three counts; 2nd degree murder, 3rd degree murder, and 2nd degree manslaughter — all guilty.  He opted to have the judge decide his sentencing, which is scheduled 8 weeks from now.

The below video is the reading of the verdict.  George, you are now free to rest in peace. 

 

Donald Trump’s Version of Law and Order Is Nonsensical

Donald John Trump, the impeached president of the United States who Senate Republicans refused to remove from office, uses “law and order” to intimidate three groups.  The first group are protesters.  If enough of them are blinded by rubber bullets, maybe they will stop protesting. The second group are people afraid of protesters believing that all protests and marches are riots. (Trump has so far identified that group “suburban housewives”.) The third group are Republicans who have strange, generalized beliefs that all Democrats are evil.

In an unbalanced, prejudicial, generalized manner, Trump represents all protests as riots.  He postures all as taking place in cities with Democratic mayors or states with Democratic Governors.  There are too many cities and states to list, but not all looting and vandalism occurred in Democratic led cities or states.  Additionally, there were attacks by people upon protesters that Trump does not mention.  There was also great physical harm caused by police on protesters and journalists.

While covering the Minnesota protest, police shot photojournalist Linda Tirado (@KillerMartinis ) in the eye. The vision in her left eye is gone.

We interviewed her.https://t.co/8wtGVQrSq0

A thread. pic.twitter.com/057ewy1mu1

— Terry Biggs (@TeeBiggs) June 14, 2020

 

Maybe Trump is threatening to send mercenaries to American cities after he realized that there are police who understand, agree with, and will not harm peaceful protesters.

While it is true that some protests included damage to property and looting, Trump is not addressing the root “law and order” issue.

On May 25, 2020, where was law and order for George Floyd? 

Indeed, an officer of the law casually tortured Floyd for over 8 minutes until he died.  The video of Floyd’s death went viral, waking-up many people to just how “law and order” is abuse of power and cover-up with dishonest police reports.

Derek Chauvin Was Negotiating A Plea Deal Before His Arrest

Derek Chauvin was the Minneapolis police officer who was fired after video was shown of him placing his knee on the neck of Gregory Floyd for over 8 minutes, killing Floyd.  It happened on May 25, 2020.  Things moved fast thereafter and Chauvin was charged with 3rd degree murder.

On the day that Chauvin was charged, personnel representing the federal government held a non-press conference.  I refer to it that way because there was no news given at that conference. I remember watching it when U.S. Attorney Erica MacDonald stated, “I thought we would have another development to talk to you about, but we don’t.”

ABC is one of many news sources reporting that before Chauvin was charged, he was negotiating with the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office and the federal prosecutor to plea guilty to state murder and federal civil rights violation.  Negotiations held-up the press conference for about 2 hours.  Negotiations failed.

Charges filed again Chauvin now include 2nd degree murder.  Click here to see a copy of the criminal complaint.

Judge Jeannice M Reding set Chauvin’s bail of $1.25m with no preconditions, or $1m with conditions that include  not contacting Mr Floyd’s family, surrendering his firearms and not working in law enforcement or security as he awaits trial.

The 3 officers (also fired) who were with Chauvin, are all charged with aiding and abetting murder.

 

 

 

Distrust — Why People Are Demonstrating

If you’re like me, since the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis Cop Derek Chauvin, you’ve spent hours watching demonstrators in the streets of major cities.  I was doing that yesterday when seeing signs carried by demonstrators. Some signs had names of others killed by police.  One name struck me.  That name is Jose Campos Torres.

Kare reports the following:

MINNEAPOLIS — United States Attorney Erica Macdonald says they’re conducting a “robust and meticulous” criminal investigation into the police-related death of George Floyd.In a press conference Thursday evening, Macdonald said that the Department of Justice has made the investigation into George Floyd’s death a top priority.

“We have assigned the highest of the high in my office to investigate and look at the case,” Macdonald said. “FBI, likewise, has assigned their experienced law enforcement officers to conduct the investigation.” She added that President Donald Trump and Attorney General William Barr are “directly and actively monitoring the investigation.”

If people did not trust that system before MacDonald spoke, they certainly did not — cannot trust it after she stated that Donald Trump and Bill Barr are “directly and actively monitoring the investigation”.  For some, the distrust was planted in 1977 when Jose Campos Torres was killed by Houston police officers, and how that system punched justice in the face.

On October 7, 2015,  I published an Open Discussion post.  In that post, I wrote about Jose Campos Torres.  Seeing his name yesterday on a sign carried by a demonstrator inspires me to share with others that the people on the streets are not only protesting the death of George Floyd.  They are also demonstrating against a system of empty promises that has often laughed in our faces because they have the authority to do so.   The following is an excerpt from that post.