Cahill credited the support from his wife, four kids and friends in getting through the unusual time. He said his neighbors routinely dropped off care packages that included a bottle of whiskey.

Local law enforcement ran a security audit on his house and sent squads by, sometimes three times per day. He bought a new home surveillance system, and police outfitted a neighbor’s tree with a camera to watch the street.

Like he had for years, Cahill slept with a steel pipe under his bed.

People placed locks with the names of those killed by law enforcement in Minnesota on the fence outside the Hennepin County Government Center in March 2021. (Leila Navidi/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

There were moments that no judge could predict or control — as when, in the midst of the trial, Brooklyn Center police officer Kimberly Potter shot and killed Daunte Wright, a 20-year-old Black man, during a traffic stop, reigniting protests and rioting and prompting the deployment of the National Guard, along with a fresh news cycle.

Politicians spoke publicly about the Chauvin case, including President Joe Biden, who said he hoped the jury reached the “right verdict,” and U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, who told protestors to “get more confrontational.”

The city was also ramping up for a vote on whether to replace the police department with a new model. As the jury was being seated, the Minneapolis City Council announced a $27 million settlement to Floyd’s family.