A Minneapolis judge has dismissed the third-degree murder charge against former cop Derek Chauvin.

Chauvin was one of the former police officers facing criminal charges after being held accountable for the killing of George Floyd.

Chauvin was charged after being captured on a cellphone video kneeling on Floyd's neck for several minutes.

Despite the drop in the third-degree murder charge, he still faces a higher charge of second-degree unintentional murder. He was also facing a second-degree manslaughter charge in relation to Floyd's death.

Chauvin's team has already filed a motion to have both charges dropped, but they were denied. 

Officers Charged

Other former Minneapolis officers charged were Thomas Lane, Tou Thao, and Alexander Kueng. The three face charges for being an accomplice and abetting murder in the killing of Floyd.

The former officers were also seeking to have their complaints dismissed for lack of probable cause.

Hennepin County District Court Judge Peter Cahill disapproved of their filed motions.

NPR report said that the judge favored Chauvin's defense team for saying that the third-degree murder did not apply in this case.

Cahill said prosecutors were only able to prove two of the three elements needed for the charge: Floyd died and that Chauvin caused Floyd's death.

According to the judge, Chauvin's action can only be directly attributed to Floyd and did not harm anyone else. The judge added that probable cause does not show at the third-degree murder charge.

Reports said that some defense attorneys have claimed that the third-degree murder charge did not suit the Floyd case.

"Some attorneys have said the charge best fits a situation such as a person randomly shooting into a moving train and killing someone," according to an NPR report.

Cahill is still considering whether he will hold a trial with all four former officers together.

Chauvin Released

Chauvin was released from jail after posting a bond. The Minnesota governor had to use the National Guard to help keep the peace in events of protests.

He was released from the state's facility in Oak Park Heights after he posted a $1 million bond, according to court documents.

Lawyers of the convicts earlier pled for separate trials as one might offer defenses and evidence that could affect each case. 

Floyd's Death

Floyd, 46, died on May 25 after Chauvin pressed his knee against Floyd's neck. It was done even after Floyd said he could not breathe.

Officers involved in Floyd's death claimed that he died due to drug overdose rather than from asphyxiation. Floyd's family, however, disagrees with the accusations brought up against him. 

The defense team claimed he had taken fentanyl, which is a deadly synthetic opioid, before his arrest.

Floyd's family lawyer, Ben Crump, said that the defense team was blaming the dead.

"The only overdose that killed George Floyd was an overdose of excessive force and racism by the Minneapolis Police Department. George was lucid, cooperative, obeyed commands and had situational awareness when he died," Crump said in a report.

Crump added that the world has seen what happened with Floyd's recorded video not being able to breathe. 

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