The Department of Justice (DOJ) is reportedly reviving its investigation of George Floyd’s death, as sources say to tell The New York Times said the department is calling new witnesses.
The federal investigation into Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer who was seen on Floyd’s knees in a video for nine minutes, was held up during the Trump administration with the then Attorney General William Barr
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Two sources told The New York Times that a new grand jury has been mobilized and that new witnesses are being subpoenaed.
Chauvin’s state trial on charges of second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter begins on March 8, almost a year after Floyd’s death, which sparked nationwide protests.
If he is acquitted in state court, attention would likely shift to the federal proceeding, which investigates possible civil rights violations.
A source told The New York Times that the case appears to be targeting Chauvin and not the three other agents who were on the scene accused of complicity.
Chauvin has been released on bail and has lived in another state for security reasons. Minneapolis will have the National Guard deployed in the process to avoid the violence that took place in the city last summer following Floyd’s death.