In the case of George Floyd's tragic death, justice can take several forms. There's the criminal trial that's currently underway in Hennepin County district court. Then there are the ongoing reform efforts in the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD).
And there's the civil litigation and the Floyd family's civil rights wrongful-death lawsuit filed against the city of Minneapolis. On Friday, Mayor Jacob Frey, the City Council and the Floyd family announced that after months of negotiations, they reached a $27 million settlement agreement.
The settlement announcement came as the eyes of the nation and world are trained on Minneapolis and the criminal trial of former MPD officer Derek Chauvin, who has been charged with second- and third-degree murder and manslaughter in connection with Floyd's death in police custody. A video of the incident taken by a bystander and seen by millions shows Chauvin kneeling on Floyd's neck for 9 minutes before he died.
The high-profile settlement came during jury selection, and its impact could lead to a delay or make it more difficult to seat unbiased jurors, which raises troubling questions about the city's handling of the matter.
Some legal observers and even the judge in the case expressed understandable concern. Defense attorney Eric Nelson said that jurors already chosen and those yet to be chosen will be prejudiced should they learn of the settlement, thereby denying his client the right to a fair trial.
Nelson called the timing of the settlement "very suspicious" and said it has "incredible propensity to taint the jury pool."
Presiding Judge Peter Cahill agreed that the timing was troubling. "I wish city officials would stop talking about this case so much," Cahill said. "At the same time, I don't find any evil intent that they were trying to tamper with this case."
Cahill said he intends to bring the seven jurors chosen before the Friday settlement announcement back into court so they can be questioned about the settlement news and whether they can be impartial.
