Chauvin Files New Challenge to Overturn Floyd Murder Conviction

Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has launched a new legal challenge to overturn his state murder conviction in the death of George Floyd, arguing that fundamental procedural errors deprived the court of jurisdiction from the start. In a petition filed on Tuesday, August 18, 2026, Chauvin's attorney, Greg Joseph, contends that the entire prosecution was unlawful because a grand jury was never convened to review the evidence and that the transfer of the case to the state attorney general was improper.

The filing, submitted to the Hennepin County District Court, asks the Minnesota Court of Appeals to pause Chauvin's current appeal so this new petition can be heard. Joseph argues that the absence of a grand jury indictment violated Chauvin's due process rights and that the charges were never lawfully brought before the court. "He lacked jurisdiction over the charges, as this Court does, because they were never lawfully brought," the petition states.

Central to the argument is the decision by Governor Tim Walz to appoint Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison to lead the prosecution. The petition characterizes this transfer of authority as unlawful and asserts that...