After weeks of testimonies by key witnesses and 10 hours of jury deliberation spanning two days, a Minnesota jury found Derek Chauvin guilty in the death of George Floyd. On Tuesday (April 20), the former Minneapolis police officer was found guilty for all three counts: second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter.
Chauvin’s bail was revoked following his conviction and will be detained at a Minneapolis jail until his sentencing expected to occur in late June. The 12-person jury consisted of four white women, two white men, three Black men, one Black woman, and two mixed-race women.
Derek Chauvin has been found GUILTY on ALL counts! ✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾#GeorgeFloyd pic.twitter.com/TBAjj8xHfq
— Reverend Al Sharpton (@TheRevAl) April 20, 2021
In the count of second-degree unintentional murder, Chauvin, 45, faces up to 40 years in prison, with the possibility of the court following Minnesota’s recommended guideline of 12.5 years for persons who’ve never been convicted. In the count of third-degree murder, he may receive anywhere from 10.5 years to 25 years. In the count of second-degree manslaughter, Chauvin’s conviction may land him an additional 4 to 10 years in prison.
On May 25, 2020, the world witnessed the death of 46-year-old George Floyd, a Black man who fatally encountered the Minneapolis police after an arrest outside of a grocery store over an alleged counterfeit $20 bill. Darnella Frazier, a then 17-year-old teen, recorded Floyd’s last moments as Chauvin kneeled on the neck of a handcuffed Floyd for 9 minutes and 29 seconds as he laid face down on the pavement, yelled his inability to breathe, and cried out for his late mother. Since then, protests sparked around the world in an effort to seek justice for the unjust murder of George Floyd and push for the end of police brutality.
Three other ex-Minneapolis officers—J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane, and Tou Thao—were charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. They are all expected to be tried together at some point in August 2020.
