Judge criticizes Waters for remarks during Chauvin trial

Source: The Hill | April 19, 2021 | Marty Johnson

Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill criticized Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) for her comments over the weekend regarding the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who’s charged with the murder of George Floyd.

“I wish elected officials would stop talking about this case, especially in a manner that is disrespectful to the rule of law and to the judicial branch and our function,” Cahill said after the jury had been sequestered to begin deliberations on Monday.

“If they want to give their opinions, they should do so … in a manner that is consistent with their oath to the Constitution,” Cahill continued.

The judge’s comments came after Chauvin defense attorney Eric Nelson argued that Waters’s comments could have prejudiced the jury and were grounds for a mistrial.

“We have U.S. representatives threatening acts of violence in relation to this specific case. It’s mind-boggling,” Nelson said to Cahill.

Cahill denied Nelson’s motion for a mistrial but said that Waters’s weekend remarks could give the defense “something on appeal that may result in this whole trial being overturned.”

On Saturday, the longtime congresswoman visited Brooklyn Center, Minn., the Minneapolis suburb where Daunte Wright, a 20-year-old Black man, was shot and killed by a white police officer during a traffic stop the previous weekend.

“We’ve got to stay on the street, and we’ve got to get more active. We’ve got to get more confrontational. We’ve got to make sure that they know that we mean business,” Waters told protestors at a demonstration there.

Protests over Wright’s death have led to the Minnesota National Guard being mobilized. 

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