Patricia Dawn Welch Day vs. Derek Chauvin

Case Background

On April 21, 2024, Plaintiff Patricia Dawn Welch Day filed a civil rights lawsuit in the United States District Court, Minnesota (Case Number: 0:24cv1862). This case, involving allegations of excessive force, was assigned to Judge John R. Tunheim and referred to Magistrate Judge Tony N. Leung.

Cause

On January 17, 2020, Plaintiff Patricia Dawn Welch Day faced a harrowing encounter with Defendants Derek Chauvin and Ellen Jensen, both officers with the Minneapolis Police Department. The incident began after a concerned resident called 911 to report a minivan stuck in a snowbank near 41st Avenue South in Minneapolis. The caller mentioned that an intoxicated woman sat inside the vehicle but posed no immediate threat. Nearly an hour later, Chauvin and Jensen arrived at the scene. By then, Plaintiff had thrown her keys into the back of the minivan to ensure she could not drive, recognizing her unfit condition. Plaintiff attempted to explain that the vehicle was immobile, but the officers disregarded her statements. Without giving any commands, Chauvin unlocked the driver's door. Both officers then grabbed Plaintiff by her arms, yanked her from the vehicle, and flung her face down onto the snow-covered street. Plaintiff did not resist, yet Chauvin pressed his kn