Trial Process in State of Minnesota v. Derek Michael Chauvin
Court Proceedings Phase
Pre-Trial Activities
After charges have been preferred, the accused persons is brought before court and the charges are read to him. It is accused person’s constitutional right to be informed of the offense he is accused of committing (Davis, 2019). Thereafter, the accused person is given an opportunity to take a plea. Here, the defendant can plead guilty, not guilty, or no contest. Regardless of how defendant pleads its must unequivocal. In the case Derek Chauvin, he pleaded not guilty.
Since the accused person should be presumed innocent until proven guilty, he has a right to be released on bail after the court considers that doing what harm the case in any way and they will come for the trial. Chauvin requested to be released on bail pending trial and the court granted his request on a $1 million bond (Associated Press, 2021). During pretrial proceedings, his lawyers unsuccessfully tried to have the charges dismissed on the premise that Floyd had preexisting issues that caused his death. Efforts to have the trial date deferred were also futile (Berman, 2021).
Trial
During a criminal trial, the prosecution and defense choose an appropriate jury. Right to be heard by a jury is among the rights of an accused person. Jury selection is an important process for both parties as it can determine loss or win, even before the case begins (Davis, 2019). The parties seek to ensure that they have a nonbiased jury. In Chauvin’s case, the prosecution sought to eliminate jury members who were appeared to favor law enforcers while defense sought to remove those who were sympathizers of the Black Lives Matter movement—a group protesting against police brutality and demanding for police reforms.
After jury selection, the jury hear the case and examine the magnitude of evidence presented before the court to exonerate or proof the defendant’s criminal culpability. The judge act operates ensuring that there is fairness and that both follow the requisite procedures. Both sides issue opening statements, and thereafter presents their evidence, herein, including the witnesses. Thereafter, they issue closing statements and prosecution rebuts the arguments that the defense team may have presented. In Chauvin case the prosecution’s main argument was that Chauvin abused his position and killed a vulnerable victim with extreme cruelty in the public glare. On the other hand, the main argument was that Floyd’s death was not caused by the neck restraint but his underlying medical conditions. After the closing arguments, the jury deliberated and found him guilty of all the charges (Berman, 2021).
Sentencing and Correctional Phase
After the accused person has been adjudged guilty, the case proceeds to the sentencing phase. Here, the court pronounces the suitable sentence for the now guilty defendant. According to Davis (2019), sentences may take different forms including fines, incarceration, probation, community service, suspended sentence, and so forth. The court has a responsibility that it imposes a punishment that is consistent with the nature and gravity of offense that the convicted defendant committed. Often, the law that defines the offense also prescribes appropriate sentence for the offense. For example, § 609.245 of Minnesota Statutes prescribes that a person convicted of first-degree aggravated robbery should be sentence for not more than 20 years in prison or instructed to pay a fine of up to $35,000, or both.
Nevertheless, judges do not often issue the maximum sentence. In making the decision, the court takes into consideration several factors. These factors include the criminal history of the accused person (including whether they are repeat offenders); their mental state; demeanor during the trial (including whether the defendants is penitent); and whether they were the primary offender or abetted its occurrence (Kaiser & Spohn, 2018). The victim impact assessment (a written statement where the victim or their kin explain the impact of the crime on the life) also has considerable leverage on how the judge sentenced the defendant. Notably, the above factors only apply where the statute grants judicial discretion in sentencing. For instance, § 609.245 of Minnesota Statutes provides judicial discretion. In other words, the judge can impose a fine that does exceed $35,000, or issue a 15-year sentence, or impose both a fine and an incarceration sentence depending on the gravity and nature of the offense.
Conversely, there are certain offenses where statutes prescribes mandatory minimum sentences. In other words, the judges has to issue a predefined sentence for a convicted defendant. The sentencing policy is mostly practiced on drug and gun offences. For example, § 893.135 of Chapter 13 of Florida Statutes (Drug Prevention and Control) states that a person convicted of trafficking cannabis of between 25-2000 pounds should be sentenced to a mandatory minimum incarceration period of 36 months and instructed to pay a fine of $25,000. This means that regardless of the accused person demeanor and other factors relating to the case, the judge will be forced to issue the sentence. Another example of mandatory minimum sentences is three strikes law provision under 18 U.S.C. § 3559 (c) states that a convicted defendant should be given a mandatory life imprisonment in case they are found guilty of a serious violent crime and are repeat offender of a federal or state offense, one of which was a serious violent crime. Mandatory minimum sentencing and three strikes law have been criticized by criminal justice experts and commentators as being disproportionate in punishing offenders (Tonry, 2019). They are also seen to be contributing to high incarceration rate and overcrowding in correctional facilities (Tonry, 2019).
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In the Derek Chauvin case, the judge had judicial discretion. Accordingly, the district court sentenced Derek Chauvin to 270 months in prisons having been found guilty Count I, Count II, and Count III. The sentence issued was for the Count I because Count II and Count III were deemed lesser as lesser offences. The court relied on the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines (MSG) which are meant to ensure proportionality, consistency, as well as predictability in sentencing. The judge, in the sentencing order, argued that the case had substantial and aggravating factors that allowed him to issue a sentence that is inconsistent with the presumptive sentence range under the MSG. Under the MSG, the judge ought to have sentenced the convicted defendant (with no criminal history) to a prison term ranging between 150 to 180 months. However, departed from the latter because of two aggravating factors: the defendant egregiously abused his position of authority [as a police officer] and he was cruel to the victim and treated without any human dignity. The judge then relied on the decision made in State v. Evans, 311 N. W. 2d 481. 483 (Minn. 1981) that the presence of one aggravating factor was sufficient for the court to issue a sentence that s double the presumptive range. Derek Chauvin appealed the decision
Analysis and Conclusion
If this matter was adjudicated before a federal court, there would be some notable differences with how tit proceeded in the state courts. For starters, the charges would have been different. The federal court would not have jurisdiction over the homicide case. Most homicide cases fall under state jurisdictions. Federal courts have jurisdiction over specific homicide incidents including murder of a federal judge/police officer (and their family), or elected official; drug-related murder; maritime murder; and sex-crime/rape related murder. The federal court, in this case, would jurisdiction over a charge brought under Title 18 U.S.C. § 242. This section provides that it is an offense for a government official/officer to their authority to abuse the constitutional rights of any citizen. In this case, the Derek Chauvin violated Floyd’s constitutional right under the Fourth Amendment by using excessive force and killing Floyd. If convicted, the sentence would could go up to capital punishment depending on the judge’s discretion. The punishment would, therefore, be more likely severe than in state criminal justice system.
The cruelty with which Derek Chauvin killed George Floyd as well as rampant police brutality incidents in the U.S. have led many critics to argue that the judge issued a lenient sentence to Chauvin. This paper disagrees. Credit must be given where its due. This was first time a white law enforcer in Minnesota was charged and convicted for killing an African American in police custody. The judge was sailing in uncharted waters as there were no any precedent of convicted police officer with similar charges (Lempert, 2021). The presumptive sentence recommended by the MSG for the second-degree murder was between 12.5 to 15 years. The judge settled on 22.5 years prison term, 10 years more than the minimum sentence than what MSG recommends (Lempert, 2021). The judge relied on two aggravating factors that had been proven beyond reasonable to deviate from the presumptive prison term range. While some observers may be unsatisfied with the prison term that the issued, the criminal justice system should be applauded for how it handled the controversial case expeditiously through a fair and just process.
References
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Associated Press. (2021, April 19). Key events timeline: George Floyd death, Chauvin trial. Retrieved January 20, 2022, from Los Angeles Times: https://www.latimes.com/world- nation/story/2021-04-19/timeline-key-events-george-floyd-death-derek-chauvin-trial
Berman, M. (2021, April 20). How Derek Chauvin became the rare police officer convicted of murder. Retrieved January 20, 2022, from The Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/04/20/chauvn-police-officer/
Bogel-Burroughs, N. & Arango, T. (2021, March 8). What to Know About the Trial of Derek Chauvin: Latest Updates. Retrieved January 20, 2022, from The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/derek-chauvin-trial-explained
Bogel-Burroughs, N. & Eligon, J. (2021, April 5). Derek Chauvin absolutely violated policy, the Minneapolis police chief says. Retrieved January 20, 2022, from The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/05/derek-chauvin-george-floyd-police-policy- violation.amp.html
Davis, F. T. (2019). American criminal justice. Cambridge University Press.
Kaiser, K. & Spohn, C. (2018). Why do judges depart: A review of reasons for judicial departures in federal sentencing. Criminology, Criminal Justice, Law & Society, 19(2), 43-62.
Kramer, R., & Remster, B. (2018). Stop, frisk, and assault? Racial disparities in police use of force during investigatory stops. Law & Society Review, 52(4), 960-993.
Lempert, K. (2021, July 1). The Derek Chauvin sentencing decision: Is it fair? Retrieved January 20, 2022, fom Brookings:
https://www.brookings.edu/blog/fixgov/2021/07/01/derek-chauvin-sentencing-decision-is-it-fair/amp
Stoughton, S. W., Noble, J. J., & Alpert, G. P. (2021). Evaluating police uses of force. NYU Press.
Tonry, M. (2019). Fifty years of American sentencing reform: Nine lessons. Crime and Justice, 48(1), 1-34.
Your questions answered
How did Derek Chauvin plead during the pre-trial phase?
During the pre-trial phase, Derek Chauvin pleaded not guilty.
On what fact did Chauvin's lawyers base their attempt to dismiss the charges against him during the pre-trial phase?
Chauvin’s lawyers had contended that George Floyd died because of preexisting medical conditions. This did not hold to get the charges dismissed.
What did the judge find cause to sentence Derek Chauvin for?
First, the judge made it evident that Chauvin acted with particular cruelty, and second, that he used his position of authority as a police officer to treat the victim cruelly; thus a sentence above the presumptive range was called for.
What is the role of jury selection in the trial?
Jury selection has been vital, whereby the prosecution opted to strike out active or retired favoring law enforcement members, and the defense struck out prospective jurors who have shown sympathy for the Black Lives Matter movement.
What is Derek Chauvin's finally determined sentence and why?
Derek Chauvin was sentenced to 270 months, which is 22.5 years in prison. The reason for the sentence above the range is because there were substantial aggravating factors found under the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines.
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