According to reports, the Department of Justice (DOJ) is reviving its investigation into the death of George Floyd to say The New York Times that the department summons new witnesses.
Federal investigation into Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer who was seen in a video kneeling on Floyd’s neck for nine minutes, was suspended during the Trump administration with then-Attorney General William Barr
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Two sources told The New York Times that a new grand jury had been paneled and that new witnesses were being assigned.
Chauvin’s state trial on charges of second-degree homicide and second-degree homicide will begin on March 8, nearly a year after Floyd’s death, which sparked protests across the country.
If acquitted in a state court, he would likely focus on federal proceedings, which examine possible civil rights violations.
A source told The New York Times that the case appears to be focused on Chauvin and not on the other three agents who were at the scene and face charges of aiding and abetting.
Chauvin has been on bail and has lived in a different state for security reasons. Minneapolis will deploy the National Guard during the trial to prevent violence that occurred in the city last summer after Floyd’s death.