Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin appeared in court today to face charges for the death of George Floyd.
Prosecutor Matthew Frank recommended increasing Chauvin’s bail to $1.25 million, to which Judge Denise Reilly acknowledged.
Frank argued that the high bail amount was due to the high-profile nature of the alleged crimes and the ensuing unrest.
“The defendant placed his knee on Mr. Floyd’s neck for approximately nine minutes,” the prosecutor stressed. “The death of Mr. Floyd has had a strong reaction in the community, to put it mildly.”
Defense attorney Eric Nelson did not object to the bail amount, stating that the issue about the bail could be tackled on future hearings.
Chauvin was offered that if he agrees to certain conditions, his bail will be reduced to $1 million.
Conditions offered include he shall not work in security or law enforcement, not have contact with Floyd’s family, not leave Minnesota and surrender all firearms and permits.
The other three officers involved in Floyd’s death, namely Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao, are faces the charges “aiding and abetting second-degree murder” and “aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter”.
According to inmate records, they are set to appear on court on June 29 and are being held on $1 million bail, which can be lowered to $750,000 with conditions.
Chauvin’s appearance came exactly two weeks after a video of Floyd’s death sparked outrage, violence and protest across the world.
The hearing was supposed to take place last week, but security concerns caused the hearing to be pushed back.
These concerns are the reasons why Chauvin appeared via video link from the Minnesota Correctional Facility in Oak Park Heights.
He had been held under suicide watch since June 1, after he was moved from Hennepin County Jail.