Imagine having an idea, and that idea was this.

You don't achieve civil rights by taking them away from someone else.

How are they being taken away?

by depriving the accused of due process and filing obviously inapplicable charges.
They're appeasing a violent mob of rioters by pressing charges despite knowing full well they don't apply under the letter of the law, in such a rush that charges that normally take 12 months to establish were filed in 2 days, before the ME report even declared cause of death. Second degree murder requires a specific intent to kill which is very obviously not present in this case, and under Minnesota statutes even 3rd degree was inapplicable because its reserved for crimes with unknown / random victims or generalized danger to the public, like shooting into a crowd.

All the precedents, normal procedures and case law got chucked right out the window because their only goal is to satisfy the angry mob. Maybe they'll sort the actual case out later, or maybe they'll just railroad him in a show trial.

Oh, they were sentenced without a judge and jury? Yea, that's pretty crazy!

3rd degree definitely applies due to the willful disregard aspect of Chauvin's actions. I don't necessarily agree with upping the charges to 2nd degree, as intent is going to be a very tough thing to prove in court. As far as the other three, once you have a charge of murder levied (regardless of degree), it's not a violation of due process to bring accessory charges against the others.

wb! who ratted you out

I actually agree that second degree murder might be too high of a charge. I'm not sure I'm comfortable with the increase in charges. Can somebody with more knowledge chime in on if they can charge him with second and third at the same time and just take whichever sticks?

Third degree murder has the following definition in Minneapolis
"Whoever, without intent to effect the death of any person, causes the death of another by perpetrating an act eminently dangerous to others and evincing a depraved mind, without regard for human life, is guilty of murder in the third degree and may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than 25 years."

By this definition his actions are third degree murder by the letter of the law. The only aspect he might have a defense on is the "depraved mind" part, but that would still be a hard sell to a jury since the act lasted for 8+ minutes.

This post was edited by Thor123422 on Jun 3 2020 05:32pm

you can always go back for lower charges afaik. 3rd just doesn't make sense with this specific states laws.
I think they're going for - one of the officers telling them that something was wrong, and being disregarded describes intent to kill.

This post was edited by Mangix on Jun 3 2020 05:41pm

According to a Twitter exchange tonight on Nicholas Sarwark's page, even 1st degree murder is attainable.