A federal jury hearing the assault and perjury case against Minneapolis police officer Michael Griffin recessed for the weekend without reaching a verdict.
Jurors to resume deliberations Monday in Minneapolis police officer's trial
April 15, 2016 at 11:37PM
They will resume Monday morning, faced with deciding whether Griffin used his position as an officer to violate the civil rights of four men in separate incidents and then lied about it to FBI agents, as prosecutors allege.
In deciding whether or not to convict Griffin, jurors will have to sift through nearly two-weeks worth of witness testimony, surveillance footage and other physical evidence to try and determine whether Griffin used excessive force in two confrontations 18 months apart. Both episodes happened outside popular downtown Minneapolis hangouts, and while Griffin was off-duty.
Jurors must determine beyond a reasonable doubt whether Griffin was the aggressor in the assaults, as the prosecution has claimed. Richman insists that the other men were the aggressors in the encounters, not his client.
Griffin was indicted last May on nine criminal counts after a yearlong FBI investigation. He has pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
Republicans across the country benefited from favorable tailwinds as President-elect Donald Trump resoundingly defeated Democrat Kamala Harris. But that wasn’t the whole story in Minnesota.
