Biden DOJ opposes court decision allowing Derek Chauvin chance to examine George Floyd’s heart

Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin is seeking to re-examine George Floyd’s heart as part of an appeal after being convicted of violating Floyd’s civil rights. Federal prosecutors in Minnesota are asking a judge to reconsider his decision to allow Chauvin’s legal team access to Floyd’s heart tissue, histology slides, photographs of his heart, and bodily fluids. The prosecutors argue that Chauvin has no legal basis for these requests and that they stem from an unvetted doctor’s opinion.

Chauvin’s defense team is investigating the possibility that Floyd died from a heart condition rather than Chauvin’s actions. They claim that Chauvin’s original defense team made a strategic decision not to examine Floyd’s heart during the trial and that this decision should not be challenged. However, the judge ruled that the evidence could help Chauvin’s defense investigate information from Dr. William Schaetzel, who believes Floyd died of a specific type of heart attack.

Chauvin’s new legal team alleges that his original trial lawyer never informed him of the doctor’s theory, leading to no testing being done to confirm it. The judge ordered that Chauvin be allowed to take the discovery he seeks, citing the significant nature of the criminal case and the potential support for Dr. Schaetzel’s opinion on how Floyd died.

Experts believe that Chauvin has the right to access these materials to exhaust his appeals. Chauvin was also convicted of state murder charges in connection with Floyd’s death in 2020, when he kneeled on Floyd’s neck for over nine minutes. Following his conviction, Chauvin was stabbed 22 times in a federal prison in an attack allegedly inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement.

Chauvin’s appeal of his state murder charges was rejected by the Supreme Court last year. Despite the controversy surrounding the case, Chauvin continues to seek legal recourse in his defense.