Prosecutor who built the medical case against Derek Chauvin is a finalist for U.S. attorney
Source: Washington Post
Alternate headline: Prosecutor who built the medical case against Derek Chauvin is a finalist for U.S. attorney
‘I couldn’t think about this case without thinking of my son’
Lola Velazquez-Aguilu built the medical case that was key in helping convict Derek Chauvin in the death of George Floyd. Now she’s in contention to be the next U.S. attorney for Minnesota.
By Holly Bailey
Today at 9:00 a.m. EDT
MINNEAPOLIS — Lola Velazquez-Aguilu, her husband and two children were headed on a family vacation last summer when a call came.
It was Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, who had just taken over the state’s prosecution of the former police officers accused of killing George Floyd. Ellison (D) wanted her to serve as a special prosecutor on the case, but she was reluctant.
-snip-
Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was sentenced last month to 22½ years in prison for murder in Floyd’s death. Three other former officers are awaiting trial in the case. And while Velazquez-Aguilu never set foot in the courtroom, she is credited with playing a key role in the trial, including finding an expert witness who was crucial to the prosecution’s case: a pulmonologist who had studied and written about the mechanics of breathing.
Now, Velazquez-Aguilu is one of three finalists to be the next U.S. attorney for Minnesota, a nomination that is expected to be announced soon. If nominated by the Biden administration and confirmed by the Senate, she would be the first Hispanic person to lead the U.S. attorney’s office in the state and only the third woman. As U.S. attorney, she would oversee the federal prosecution of Chauvin and the other officers who have also been charged with violating Floyd’s civil rights.
“Despite having zero public role, she was integral to the (Chauvin) case. I mean, integral,” said Neal Katyal, a former acting U.S. solicitor general who is also serving as a special prosecutor in the case against the former officers. “She weighed in on literally everything. … Nobody got to see what she did, but it was as good a performance from a lawyer as I’ve ever seen in my life.”
-snip-
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/07/12/chauvin-trial-prosecutor-us-attorney-candidate/
= new reply since forum marked as read
