MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A judge has set $1 million bail for the former Minneapolis police officer charged with second-degree murder in George Floyd’s death.
Derek Chauvin is also charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in Floyd’s May 25 death.
Chauvin said almost nothing during an 11-minute hearing Monday, his first court appearance since being arrested in connection with Floyd’s death. Chauvin appeared virtually from the state’s maximum security prison in Oak Park Heights.
Chauvin’s attorney, Eric Nelson, did not contest the bail. It was raised from the $500,000 initially set in the case. Nelson also and didn’t address the substance of the charges.
Chauvin’s next court appearance is set for June 29.
The handcuffed black man died after the white police officer pressed his knee into Floyd's neck for several minutes even after he stopped moving and pleading for air.
Chauvin and three other officers on the scene, J. Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao, were fired the next day. The other officers are also charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder.
The other officers are being held in the Hennepin County jail on $750,000 bond, The Associated Press reports.
Floyd’s death set off protests, some violent, in Minneapolis that swiftly spread around the U.S. and the world.
Chauvin's first court appearance landed on the same day as the public viewing of Floyd's casket at a Houston church. The 46-year-old is scheduled to be laid to rest after funeral services on Tuesday.
