Derek Chauvin plans to appeal his conviction and sentence for the murder of George Floyd — arguing the judge abused his discretion in critical points in the case, according to documents filed Thursday.
The former Minneapolis police officer said in the court filing that he intends to appeal on 14 grounds.
One claim made by Chauvin in the notice to appeal is that Judge Peter Cahill abused his discretion by denying him a request to move the trial out of Hennepin County because of pretrial publicity.
Chauvin, 45, also claimed Cahill abused his discretion when he denied requests to postpone the trial or grant a new one — and when he rejected a request to sequester the jury for the duration of the trial.
Separately on Thursday, Chauvin filed a motion to pause the appeals process until the state’s high court reviews a previous decision to deny him a public defender.
Chauvin said he’s been without a lawyer in the appeals process, and has no income apart from prison wages.
During his trial, Chauvin’s lawyer was funded by the Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association’s legal defense fund.
In April, Chauvin was convicted of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter of Floyd after kneeling on his back for nearly 10 minutes in 2020.
He was sentenced to 22 1/2 years in prison.
Chauvin is also charged in federal court with violating Floyd’s civil rights. He has pleaded not guilty to those charges.
With Post wires