Topline
One of the jurors involved in the Derek Chauvin trial broke his silence with a series of TV interviews Wednesday morning in which he said the jury felt no pressure to convict the former Minneapolis Police officer of murdering George Floyd, countering suggestions the decision was influenced by public opinion.
Key Facts
Brandon Mitchell, juror #52 in the trial, told CBS This Morning that he personally did not feel pressure to find Chauvin guilty on all counts, adding: “I don’t think any of us felt like that.”
Mitchell said the main feeling among jurors was stress as “every day we had to come in and watch a Black man die,” emphasizing: “It wasn’t pressure to come to a guilty verdict.”
Jury members were in agreement about convicting on all three counts, aside from one juror who originally voted against the least severe charge of second-degree manslaughter, according to Mitchell.
He said the original hesitation from that juror was about the wording of the charge, but that the person was soon persuaded after “we went through the definitions that were given to us and broke it down from different perspectives.”
Crucial Quote
“Coming in each and every day and watching someone die is stressful enough by itself, so anything outside of that was secondary,” Mitchell said. “It had its impact on me. There were a few days where I was like ‘I don’t know if I’m going to make it in this day.’”
Key Background
In the aftermath of the trial, some GOP lawmakers and pundits have suggested the verdict was influenced by intense public pressure, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) implying during an appearance on Fox News that jurors found Chauvin guilty because they were “scared of what a mob may do.” Fox News host Tucker Carlson, meanwhile, deemed the verdict the consequence of “jury intimidation” spurring from “11 months of mostly unrestrained violence and intimidation from [Black Lives Matter].” This criticism was fueled by comments from Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters (Calif.), who, speaking at a protest, encouraged demonstrators to “get more active” and “more confrontational” if Chauvin wasn’t found guilty.
Surprising Fact
A recent CBS News poll found that nearly half (46%) of Republicans felt the jury came to the wrong decision in convicting Chauvin of murder.
Further Reading
“Nearly Half Of Republicans Think Derek Chauvin Verdict Was Wrong, Poll Shows” (Forbes)
