Derek Chauvin was always going to have a tough time defending his actions during his trial. The video of him kneeling on George Floyd was damning and was going to be almost impossible to explain away.
In the end, the decision was made to not have the former police officer answer questions on the stand. That does not mean, however, that Chauvin didn’t try to plead his case in other ways. One alternate juror says that the ex-cop attempted to intimidate her with constant stares.