Former Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin appears in court on tax evasion charges

Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin appeared remotely Tuesday in Washington County District Court for his first appearance on tax evasion charges.

Chauvin, 44, appeared before Judge Sheridan Hawley, who set conditions for Chauvin's pretrial release and scheduled his next hearing for 9:30 a.m. Oct. 30.

The former officer is unlikely to be released from the state prison at Oak Park Heights, as he also faces murder and manslaughter charges in the May 25 killing of George Floyd. Bail in that case is $1.25 million.

Three other ex-officers, Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao, are charged as accomplices. The others have been released on bail pending trial in March.

If Chauvin were to make bail on the murder charge, he would not be required to post monetary bond on the tax evasion charges, but he would have to comply with standard conditions set by Hawley, which include making all future court dates and remaining law-abiding.

Chauvin is the officer who was seen kneeling on Floyd's neck in the street outside Cup Foods in south Minneapolis on May 25, a killing that touched off days of civil unrest in cities around the world.

Two months later, an imprisoned Chauvin and his estranged wife, Kellie Chauvin of Oakdale, were charged with nine felony counts of aiding and abetting false or fraudulent tax returns or failing to file returns.

According to the charges, from 2014 to 2019, the Chauvins underreported $464,433 in joint income and owed a total of $21,853 in taxes. The complaint alleges they owe $37,868, including interest and late-filing and fraud penalties.

Chauvin and the three other former officers are due to appear in court Friday in front of Judge Peter Cahill on the charges related to Floyd's death.

Rochelle Olson • 612-673-1747

Twitter: @rochelleolson