In each lawsuit and criminal charge that goes to a trial, there is an appropriate venue that allows the defendant to have a fair trial so as to not violate their constitutional rights. Here it will be difficult to judge where each of the parties in each of the cases would have a truly fair trial. In the George Floyd, Rayshard Brooks, and Breonna Taylor cases in particular, society reacted more and more and eventually erupted into national protesting and rioting after each of these incidents. It would be hard to not know what was going on with each of these cases, let alone finding a diverse jury pool that will render an unbiased decision to both the state and the defendant. Don’t be surprised if the attorneys for the Atlanta police officers file a motion for change of venue because of the demographics of the Atlanta area. Many people in the Atlanta area are unhappy and it will be difficult to find a jury of the officers’ peers to fairly judge his actions.
The question now is, are enough people affected in even rural areas to ensure that there is not an unfair trial on the part of the victims. The same thing goes for the Breonna Taylor case. Jurys have statistically been in favor of not convicting police officers. There is likely going to be a paradigm shift in the way society views the actions of police officers because of the difference between today and 30 years ago: technology. Everything is being recorded. People are seeing firsthand accounts of the brutality and injustice that people of color are facing on a daily basis. This is what will spark the change of society to ensure that there is no longer an implicit bias given to police officers because of their profession.