A judge kept bail at $1 million Tuesday for a pastor accused of gunning down a popular North High School staffer in a jealous rage.
Derrick Trevor Griffin, 40, making his first appearance in Hennepin County District Court, turned repeatedly to look at several friends and family members.
Assistant public defender Arlene Santiago argued for $75,000 bail, saying that Griffin, an ordained minister, had support from numerous family and friends in town. Assistant County Attorney Judith Cole countered that Griffin had three previous gun violations and was the subject of two arrest warrants in the last year.
Judge Kerry Meyer set bail at $1 million or $750,000 with conditions, including no contact with the victim's family. At one point Griffin asked, "Am I being released?"
"If you post $750,000 bail," Meyer responded.
"We can skip all that then," Griffin said.
Griffin, associate pastor at True Vine Missionary Baptist Church, was charged Monday with second-degree murder in the slaying on May 11 of Kristopher Miller, 27. Miller was shot on the front steps of his apartment in the 1100 block of Irving Avenue North after a night out with Griffin's estranged wife and two others.
County Attorney Mike Freeman said his office intends to convene a grand jury to pursue first-degree murder charges.
