Prosecutor felt gratitude after Chauvin verdicts

One of the prosecutors on the Derek Chauvin case had a good feeling when the jury came back after only about 10 hours of deliberations.

"Given the speed with which they came back, I was expecting it was going to be a verdict we would be ok with,"  said prosecutor Steve Schleicher.

The jury ended up returning guilty verdicts on three accounts against Chauvin in George Floyd's death last May.

"Fortunate enough to be in this moment and in this space, to play a role in helping justice happen. To me that's a privilege, that's a blessing," said Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison.

Schleicher said he had an "overwhelming feeling of gratitude and satisfaction."

Schleicher says those feelings sunk in when he looked at Floyd's brother seated in court.

"I felt so happy to be able to look at him and know we did what we were supposed to do," he said.

Schleicher said jury selection was key.

"I was looking for particular attitudes," he said. "We have to have people, who are going to allow themselves to hear our message. iI thought through the questioning this was a truly open jury."

He says he often watched the jurors' eyes to gauge reactions, since they had masks on.

"Trying to read: is there something I need to explain more? Something I need to go back over?"

Several police officials, including the Minneapolis chief, criticized Chauvin's actions and Schleicher felt the jury noticed that.

"I could tell they found that testimony important," he said.