Attorneys for officer who killed Philando Castile gets judge removed from case

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The case against the police officer who shot and killed Philando Castile has taken a surprising turn.

The judge who was presiding over the case has been removed.

According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the lawyers who are representing St. Anthony Police Officer Jeronimo Yanez asked that Ramsey County District Court Judge Edward Wilson be removed from the case. No detailed justification for his removal has yet been given.

“We did our research, and based on our research, we chose to remove him,” stated Earl Gray, one of Yanez’s attorneys. “We felt that we had to remove him. Simple as that.”

Attorneys in that state can request “the removal of one assigned judge per case without citing a reason.” When this happens, the request is automatically granted.

With a case already so racially charged, this is noteworthy.

Castile, a 32-year-old black man, made headlines in July when he was fatally shot by police. His girlfriend live streamed the aftermath of the incident. In the video, Castile was shown to be complying with the officer’s instructions.

He informed the officer that he had a concealed weapons permit and had a gun on his person. He did not want the police officer to be alarmed if he saw it.