This archive report was first published on 10 July 2020.
Published on July 10, 2020
A Hennepin County District Judge has issued a gag order in the George Floyd case, following comments from defense attorneys that may have compromised the trial.
The gag order, issued by Judge Peter Cahill, bars disclosing any information related to the case to the media or the general public.
Defense attorney Earl Gray had made comments to the media about the case, including stating that charges against his client, former officer Thomas Lane, should be dismissed because he didn't know a killing was being committed.
Gray also stated that Lane had called an ambulance and helped with cardio-pulmonary resuscitation on the way to the hospital where George Floyd was pronounced dead.
The four former officers, including Lane, Tou Thao, and J. Alexander Kueng, face charges of aiding and abetting Derek Chauvin, who knelt on Floyd's neck for nearly eight minutes.
Chauvin faces second and third-degree murder charges, while the other three officers face up to 40 years behind bars if convicted.
The trial is set to begin on March 8, 2021.
