Attorneys for former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin filed a petition Tuesday seeking a dismissal of the state murder charges against him, arguing that it was unlawful for Gov. Tim Walz to assign Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison to prosecute the case
In April 2021, Chauvin, 50, was convicted of second-degree murder in the death of George Floyd in police custody in May 2020. Video showed that Chauvin had his knee on Floyd’s neck for over 9 minutes.
An autopsy revealed that there was both fentanyl and methamphetamine in the man’s system, which may have been contributing factors to his death. Floyd would not comply with police orders to stay in the squad car, prompting Chauvin to eventually get on top of him and put a knee on his neck to subdue him.
Chauvin is currently serving a state sentence of 22 years, in addition to a 21-year federal sentence for violating Floyd’s civil rights, The Hill reported.
The former police officer’s latest petition seeking to get his conviction overturned was filed with the Minnesota Court of Appeals. That court has denied two previous petitions by Chauvin.
Chauvin’s attorneys argued in their Tuesday filing that Walz’s assignment of the case to Ellison was “illegitimate” and therefore violated their client’s due process rights.
🚨BREAKING: Derek Chauvin’s attorney seeks dismissal in a new bombshell court filing alleging ‘illegal’ and ‘fraudulent’ conduct by Governor Tim Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison, and the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office.
Chauvin’s attorney, Greg Joseph, argues a grand jury… pic.twitter.com/baF5VdeDKu
— Liz Collin (@lizcollin) August 18, 2026
Do you think Derek Chauvin was wrongly convicted?
Yes: 95% (20 Votes)
No: 5% (1 Votes)
“Because Hennepin County’s unlawful charges against Mr. Chauvin were not severe enough for the mob, Walz referred the case to Keith Ellison, who signed and e-filed a second unfounded complaint against Derek Chauvin that included the murder charge,” Chauvin’s attorney, Greg Joseph, wrote in the petition, according to Alpha News.
The filing further contended that a grand jury should have been empaneled to consider the charges.
The lack of a grand jury “allowed prosecutors to substitute their judgment for that of the grand jury in order to force Mr. Chauvin to face charges that were unsupported by probable cause,” the filing said, according to MPR News.
“As a result of these several due process violations, including the failure to present the matter to a grand jury for a probable cause determination or even to convene one, both this Court and the District Court lack jurisdiction over the charges in the Amended Complaint on which he is currently incarcerated, and it must be dismissed immediately,” Chauvin’s legal team wrote, The Hill said.
Billionaire Elon Musk argued Wednesday on X, “Derek Chauvin was unjustly convicted of murder, therefore he should be freed. The facts show that he was not the cause of death, nor did he at any time intend for a death to occur.”
“Whatever else he may be, he is not a murderer. That is the truth,” Musk asserted.
Derek Chauvin was unjustly convicted of murder, therefore he should be freed.
The facts show that he was not the cause of death, nor did he at any time intend for a death to occur. Whatever else he may be, he is not a murderer.
That is the truth.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 19, 2026
Video shown during the Chauvin trial included Floyd appearing to experience a panic attack, perhaps caused or exacerbated by the drugs in his system. An officer could be heard instructing him multiple times to take a seat in the squad car, but he would not comply.
George Floyd would still be alive if he had only complied with police direction. Body cam footage clearly showed defiance by Floyd, and even when he was finally wrangled into the police car he escaped on the other side. Had he sat in the car, he would still be alive. TRUTH. pic.twitter.com/wB3fd4B1ZV
— Booker (@RealBookerScott) May 25, 2024
Floyd was calling out that he could not breathe before Chauvin took action to subdue him on the ground.
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