Just like OJ, the George Floyd Murder Trial Will be Televised Live But that Comes with a Price
Trying to do your job in front of a live camera can be disconcerting. I say this as a Criminal Defense Attorney who has also done a lot of legal analysis for NBC, CBS, CNN, Fox, Univision, BBC and what feels like just about everybody else on the planet over the last 20 years. It can get into your head and mess with you a bit until you get used to it. Thousands of appearances later, I’m just catching my stride. Now, imagine being an attorney or a witness or a Judge getting ready to participate in the absolute biggest case of your career and you may have never stood in front of a camera. Welcome to Minneapolis and to the George Floyd murder trial. Lights, camera, action!
Lets start with a little background. For the first time in Minnesota history, cameras will be allowed in the courtroom for a trial. As the trial of former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin approaches, there will likely be a long line of people who want to get in and watch the trial. However, if you can’t make it down to the Hennepin County Courthouse and get a coveted seat starting on March 8th, you can always watch it at home and you won’t be alone. Millions are expected to watch.
Breaking with Minnesota legal tradition, Judge Peter Cahill, the presiding judge, ruled that because of limited seating capacity, courtroom accessibility, security, COVID-19 and extraordinary interest, a public trial needed to truly be public. So, cameras are in. Of course there will be limitations. These include:
Jurors will not be shown and their identities will be private until the trial is over
No juvenile witnesses will be shown although audio is available
No members of George Floyd's family will be allowed on video unless they give consent
No microphones on counsel tables
No zooming in on prosecution or defense tables or of defendant
Minnesota is different than a lot of states in that it doesn’t allow video or even still cameras in the courtrooms for trials. In fact, it is only recently that the Court even started a pilot project that allowed cameras in the courtroom for sentencings. I had one of the first televised felony sentencings in the State during a case in that same courthouse. So this shift is pretty monumental.
As I think about cameras, my greatest concern is that it will change behavior of the parties, players, the witnesses. Will they ham it up for the trial?
This brings me back to doing a very complicated job while standing in front of a camera for the first time. As I think about cameras and the stress and distractions that they bring, my greatest concern is that it will change the behavior of the lawyers, parties, players, the witnesses. Will they ham it up for the trial? Will they freeze up? Will they do things differently? This will be something to watch as the trial begins and develops. Knowing that millions of eyes are on you when you pick up a pen, take a breath, look down, look up . . . Well, you get the picture. These things may roll through the heads of the attorneys on both sides of the aisle as important things are actually happening. Can it change the outcome?
At the same time, there is a very strong counterargument to allowing them in, transparency. If this is truly the people’s court, then shouldn’t people get to watch? That debate continues.
Allowing for live streaming of the trial, Judge Cahill’s ruling potentialy makes this trial somewhat reminiscent of the O.J. Simpson trial where people could watch the proceedings blow by blow. Of course, there is always the potential that the trial could devolve into some kind of macabre entertainment. However, in the end, I think that the transparency argument is a very compelling one that can’t be ignored.
All I know is that when the cameras start rolling, we will see if the lawyers, the witnesses, even the Judge, can actually forget that the cameras are there. We will see. . . As I said at the beginning, Lights, Camera, Action!
Jack Rice is a former prosecutor, Board Certified Criminal Law Specialist and Criminal Defense Attorney. He has spent decades in these courtrooms and is a sought-after Minnesota Criminal Defense Attorney. Jack has spent decades trying cases and those same decades in front of the camera. He is doing legal analysis on the George Floyd Trial. For a free consultation, sit down with the team at Jack Rice Defense.