'He was guilty': Alternate juror says she agrees with Derek Chauvin's conviction
Updated: 10:22 AM CDT Apr 23, 2021
I guess I didn't really realize how much or how much people were affected. I mean, the, by standards really, really brought that out of, you know, how emotional it was for him and um, that they couldn't, I think a lot of them did the best they could to bring attention to, you know, hey, pay attention to this guy, and it just, it just didn't work out that way. So, um and police officers, Yes, Yeah, it did, it clarified on their use of force policy. Um it was helpful that the few officers that came in and said, hey, you know, I'm the train in this class, I teach this class, um, what you see, Mr chauvin doing is something that we don't teach. I I don't even know what that is. So yeah, so yeah, Dr Tobin was like the turning point for me, um obviously he's very intelligent and I appreciate him explaining it in the way that all of us could understand it, I understood what he was saying. Um I thought it was very powerful, probably the most important witness they had, um and why he was powerful to me is because I feel like he could actually point out going through the video and saying, hey, at this instance right here is when Mr Floyd lost his life, you know, he pointed out the seizure and he's like, this is what happened right here. So jurors knew from the jury question that this was big, but did you really understand big? No, not until we were dismissed, and Judge CAhill said that, you know, you're free to turn on the news and talk to whoever you want to, and you know, you could go out here and have a press conference if you want to and um no, I wasn't aware, what was it like being in the same room as Mr Shelvin, obviously you knew little bit about case before you. The start of the space was it describe your emotions in the same room? I mean, I do feel bad for him. You know, whether you know, he made a huge mistake and it costs somebody their life, you know, nobody is a winner out of this whole situation. I feel bad. I was sitting pretty much across from him. So when I was done, note taking or looking between the lawyers and paying attention to the witnesses, I did lock eyes with them a couple of times and it was a little uncomfortable. You know, I mean, no intent on any messages or anything going back and forth and just, you know, you look up in there, there he is. So, I mean, he has to look up at some point too. So and one of the parts, during, during jury questioning in the beginning was, you know, asking about if you had seen anything about the story, I mean you live in the area, it's impossible to have missed this story going back to May and june, but I'm curious now being on the other side of the trial and literally seeing every piece of evidence, How has that changed your perspective on what you thought about the story? Maybe before you were selected as an alternate juror? And now I think it's more about just this case. Um I didn't I didn't want to say I don't realize that, but um you know, this could be a turning point going forward for the better Minnesota has an opportunity to show our best um come together as a whole and and make some changes um hopefully on police reform. So Mr Blood Mr White House said didn't do a comparison bystanders Under Brandon there, right? That became sort of from all different places, different ages because be there. And it was kind of like came all selected for random places. Yeah, I do. I mean it was a pretty diverse group of us there, you know, races, sexes, um, ages. So I think we all add a unique perspective to it, so which is a good thing and.
'He was guilty': Alternate juror says she agrees with Derek Chauvin's conviction
Updated: 10:22 AM CDT Apr 23, 2021
An alternate juror at the trial of Derek Chauvin said she agreed with the jury's decision to convict him in George Floyd's death, saying she saw Chauvin as the leader of officers at the scene and that he brushed off warnings by bystanders that Floyd was in danger."I felt he was guilty," Lisa Christensen said on "CBS This Morning" in a story aired Thursday. "I didn't know if it was going to be guilty on all counts, but I would have said guilty."Watch Christensen's interview with CNN in the video player above.Christensen was one of two alternates dismissed by Judge Peter Cahill after Monday's closing arguments. The remaining 12 jurors voted unanimously Tuesday to convict Chauvin on all counts: second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. The identities of jurors and alternates are protected under the judge's order, and Christensen is the first to publicly speak out.Chauvin, 45, was by far the most senior officer at the scene. Prosecutors said he pinned Floyd to the pavement outside Cup Foods, where Floyd had been accused of passing a counterfeit $20 bill, for 9 minutes, 29 seconds. Three other officers, since fired, face trial in August."I felt like he was the leader, and the other officers were following his lead," Christensen said. "I kind of felt like he wasn’t taking the warnings seriously obviously, kind of like, 'I know what I'm doing.'"Christensen described her impressions of Chauvin."Every time I would look up, he was right in my vision," she said. "So we locked eyes quite a few times and I was pretty uncomfortable."Prosecutors played a wide range of videos for the jury, including teenager Darnella Frazier's bystander video that was seen worldwide in the hours after Floyd's death. That video and the officers' body camera video captured bystanders shouting at Chauvin and the other officers to get off Floyd, warning that they were cutting off his breathing and asking them to check for a pulse.Christensen said she felt prosecutors "made a really good, strong argument" and credited Dr. Martin Tobin, one of their medical experts, for his testimony on how Floyd's breathing was cut off by the restraint."Dr. Tobin was the one that really did it for me. He explained everything to me, I understood it, down to where he said, 'This was the moment where he lost his life.' Really got to me."Christensen was critical of the defense, saying attorney Eric Nelson "overpromised in the beginning and didn't live up to what he said he was going to do."Nelson argued that Floyd died due to his use of drugs and to heart issues. He also argued that videos were deceptive, that Chauvin's knee wasn't on Floyd's neck as long as prosecutors said and that an autopsy found no evidence of damage to his neck. And he sought to portray the concerned bystanders as a threatening crowd that distracted officers.Nelson has not commented since the verdicts and didn't immediately respond to a message Thursday.Christensen praised Frazier for shooting the video, saying without it she didn't think the case would have been possible."I just don't understand how it got from a counterfeit $20 bill to a death," she said. "It kind of shocks me."
An alternate juror at the trial of Derek Chauvin said she agreed with the in George Floyd's death, saying she saw Chauvin as the leader of officers at the scene and that he brushed off warnings by bystanders that Floyd was in danger.
"I felt he was guilty," Lisa Christensen said on "CBS This Morning" in a story aired Thursday. "I didn't know if it was going to be guilty on all counts, but I would have said guilty."
Watch Christensen's interview with CNN in the video player above.
Christensen was by Judge Peter Cahill after Monday's closing arguments. The remaining 12 jurors voted unanimously Tuesday to convict Chauvin on all counts: second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. The identities of jurors and alternates are protected under the judge's order, and Christensen is the first to publicly speak out.
Chauvin, 45, was by far the most senior officer at the scene. Prosecutors said he pinned Floyd to the pavement outside Cup Foods, where Floyd had been accused of passing a counterfeit $20 bill, for 9 minutes, 29 seconds. Three other officers, since fired, face trial in August.
"I felt like he was the leader, and the other officers were following his lead," Christensen said. "I kind of felt like he wasn’t taking the warnings seriously obviously, kind of like, 'I know what I'm doing.'"
Christensen described her impressions of Chauvin.
"Every time I would look up, he was right in my vision," she said. "So we locked eyes quite a few times and I was pretty uncomfortable."
Prosecutors played a wide range of videos for the jury, including teenager that was seen worldwide in the hours after Floyd's death. That video and the officers' body camera video captured bystanders shouting at Chauvin and the other officers to get off Floyd, warning that they were cutting off his breathing and asking them to check for a pulse.
Christensen said she felt prosecutors "made a really good, strong argument" and credited Dr. Martin Tobin, one of their medical experts, for his testimony on how Floyd's breathing was cut off by the restraint.
"Dr. Tobin was the one that really did it for me. He explained everything to me, I understood it, down to where he said, 'This was the moment where he lost his life.' Really got to me."
Christensen was critical of the defense, saying attorney Eric Nelson "overpromised in the beginning and didn't live up to what he said he was going to do."
Nelson argued that Floyd died due to his use of drugs and to heart issues. He also argued that , that Chauvin's knee wasn't on Floyd's neck as long as prosecutors said and that an autopsy found no evidence of damage to his neck. And he sought to portray the concerned bystanders as a threatening crowd that distracted officers.
Nelson has not commented since the verdicts and didn't immediately respond to a message Thursday.
Christensen praised Frazier for shooting the video, saying without it she didn't think the case would have been possible.
"I just don't understand how it got from a counterfeit $20 bill to a death," she said. "It kind of shocks me."