Ex-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin requested dismissal of murder charges in George Floyd killing

• On Friday, former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin requested that a judge and assistant attorney general dismiss his charges of murder and manslaughter.
• In May, Chauvin, a white police officer, was captured on video kneeling on George Floyd's neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds. Floyd, who is Black, died by homicide according to medical examiners.
• In a memo in support of the motion to dismiss, Chauvin's attorney explained that he acted "according to MPD policy, his training, and within his duties as a licensed peace officer of the State of Minnesota. "

Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has requested that the judge and assistant Minnesota attorney general dismisses his charges of murder and manslaughter, according to new court papers filed on Friday.

Chauvin was arrested and charged with second-degree and third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter after a video that circulated in social media showed Chauvin, a white man who was a police officer at the time, kneeled on George Floyd's neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds. Insider's Reha Mahbubani previously reported that Floyd, who is Black, was killed in a homicide according to medical examiners.

Three other former officers, Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng, and Thomas Lane, were charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. All four were fired from the department.

Chauvin's attorney said in a memorandum for the motion to dismiss charges because "by the time Mr. Chauvin arrived on scene, Mr. Floyd was actively resisting arrest, endangering himself and officers." He said Chauvin, who had received 18 complaints during his 19-year career as a police officer, had "acted according to MPD policy, his training, and within his duties as a licensed peace officer of the State of Minnesota."

Chauvin's attorney, Eric J. Nelson, did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

A similar argument was made by the lawyer of Lane, who is out on bail. Lane's attorney told the Los Angeles Times that the four former police officers were just "doing their jobs." Lane, Thao, and Kueng have all previously filed motions to dismiss charges. On Friday, the state filed a notice of intent to seek an upward sentencing departure for all of them.

Transcripts from police body-camera footage showed Floyd had repeatedly said he was afraid the police would shoot him and said, "I can't breathe" while being detained. Video footage shows Floyd begging Lane, who is charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter, to not shoot him. A witness previously stated that Floyd did not resist arrest before the killing.

• Read more:
• A lawyer for a police officer charged in George Floyd's death says Floyd 'killed himself' by dying from an overdose and a heart condition
• A 3rd body cam video from George Floyd's fatal arrest shows a crowd of shocked bystanders demanding officers to check his pulse
• George Floyd begged the police not to shoot him from the moment they arrived, bodycam transcripts show
• 18 complaints in 19 years, and a murder charge: What we know about ex-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin