The Ohio State Highway Patrol has sent a group of 100 state troopers to assist in Minnesota as the Derek Chauvin trial nears its end with closing arguments Monday.
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“The requests came from the Governor of Minnesota and the Minnesota State Patrol. The decision has been made to send a contingency of Ohio troopers to assist,” said Lt. Craig Cvetan with the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
>> Derek Chauvin trial: Closing arguments begin Monday
The group left for Minnesota this morning and will be assisting with security in the state.
“They’ll be relieving state troopers and other law enforcement there, so that frees up those Minnesota law enforcement officers to respond to any incidents,” Cvetan said.
The last time a request like this was made was in 2016, when out-of-state law enforcement was requested to assist with security at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland.
“It’s not something that happens very frequently,” Cvetan said.
The state patrol does have an agreement with Minnesota law enforcement about how long the deployment will last, however those details are unable to be released due to security concerns, the Lieutenant said.
Cvetan said its the patrol’s duty to protect people and when troopers are sworn into their roles they make a promise when they take an oath of office.
“That oath has no borders,” he said. “We’re willing to go wherever we need to go in the interest of public safety, especially when a request like this is made.”
The deployment does take its toll on families who are impacted, Cvetan said.
“It is very difficult on the family.” he said. “We want those troopers to have contact with their family, keep them up to date, but again not provide any information that could be a security risk.”
Jurors began hearing testimony on March 29. Chauvin was arrested on murder and manslaughter charges in May 2020 after video surfaced on social media showing him pressing his knee to George Floyd’s neck for minutes.
The Hennepin County medical examiner ruled the death a homicide, determining that Floyd’s heart stopped as he was being restrained. A separate autopsy commissioned for Floyd’s family also called his death a homicide but concluded that he died of asphyxiation due to neck and back compression.
Floyd’s death prompted global outrage and sparked a national reckoning over racism and police brutality.
Three other officers also face charges in Floyd’s death. Thomas Lane, Tou Thao and J. Alexander Kueng are charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. They are expected to face juries in August.