Why was Derek Chauvin denied a public defender? Ex-cop claims he's on prison wages
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA: Disgraced Minnesota cop Derek Chauvin is facing a massive challenge in his plan to appeal his conviction and sentencing. The former cop is currently serving a 22.5-year sentence for murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. While it was far from the maximum available penalty, the verdict itself is significant, but the massive victory for Black Lives Matter protesters could be short-lived.
As we previously reported, Chauvin did plan to appeal the verdict, and now appears to have some sort of strategy to do so. But, he's facing quite a challenge. Interestingly, in September 2021, another disgraced Minneapolis cop Mohammed Noor had his conviction overturned, which could be just the precedent Chauvin needs. Before he was sentenced, there were also rumors of a plea deal, but ultimately that never happened. Instead, he was found guilty by a jury and sentenced.
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However, the case is far from over. In September, Chauvin filed documents stating his intention to appeal, within the 90-day window he had since his June 25 sentencing. But it appears he's having some trouble turning that intention into action. It appears that the State Supreme Court has turned down his request for a public defender, leaving him with few good options ahead of the appeal.
Why was Chauvin denied a public defender?
On October 6, the Minnesota State Supreme Court ruled that Chauvin was not "financially eligible" for a public defender. The court wrote that it believes the ex-cop can pay for his own attorney, after reviewing his debts, assets, and the Office of the Minnesota Appellate Public Defender's prior determination that Chauvin was ineligible. However, Chauvin has a very different story.
In his affidavit, Chauvin noted that his only income has been "nominal prison wages" over the past few months and that his "debts currently exceed his limited assets." During his trial, the Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association´s legal defense fund footed the bill for Chauvin's attorney, but as he noted, the fund's "obligation to pay for my representation terminated upon my conviction and sentencing." As a result, he's now been left to fund his own defense but doesn't appear to have a way to do so. The door isn't closed entirely. The court did rule that he may seek a public defender in the future, but did not state when they would reconsider their October 6 ruling.
The ruling is a severe blow to Chauvin, who believes he has 14 grounds on which to appeal. Amongst them include grounds that the jury should have been sequestered, he should have been moved from Hennepin County, and the publicity "tainted the jury pool". These grounds were also raised previously by his former defense attorney Eric Nelson, while the case was going on, but denied.
It's an exhaustive list of grounds, covering a wide range of possible options. At the moment, it is unclear if he will be successful, but with 14 grounds, it's likely his appeal will be a long, drawn-out legal battle, should he get representation. Until then, he'll continue to serve time at Oak Park Heights, while his fellow officers from that day - Tou Thao, Thomas Lane, and J. Alexander Kueng fight their cases, the trail for which is set to begin in March 2022.