Ex-cop Chauvin gets 22 1/2 years in prison for George Floyd's death
26 June, 2021
Former Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin was sentenced to 22 1/2 years in prison for the murder of George Floyd, whose dying gasps under Chauvin’s knee led to the biggest outcry against racial injustice in the U.S. in generations.
The punishment - which fell short of the 30 years that prosecutors had requested - came after Chauvin broke his a lot more than yearlong silence in court to offer condolences to the Floyd family and say he hopes more info developing will eventually provide them with “some satisfaction.”
With good behavior, Chauvin, 45, could possibly be paroled after serving two-thirds of his sentence, or around 15 years.
Beyond your courthouse, a crowd around 50 persons clasped hands and positioned their hands on each other’s shoulders. The reaction was subdued as persons debated if the sentence was long enough. Some cursed in disgust.
“Let us not feel that we’re here to celebrate,” said civil rights leader the Rev. Al Sharpton. “Justice could have been George Floyd never having been killed. Justice would have been the utmost. We got more than we thought only because we've been disappointed so often before.”
In imposing the punishment, Judge Peter Cahill went beyond the 12 1/2-year sentence prescribed under state guidelines, citing “your abuse of a posture of trust and authority plus the particular cruelty” proven to Floyd.
Chauvin was immediately led back to prison. As with the verdicts in April, he showed little emotion when the judge pronounced the sentence. His eyes moved rapidly around the courtroom, his COVID-19 mask obscuring a lot of his face.
The fired white officer was convicted of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter for pressing his knee against Floyd’s neck for up to 9 1/2 minutes as the 46-year-old Black man gasped that he couldn’t breathe and went limp on May 25, 2020.
Bystander video of Floyd’s arrest on suspicion of passing a counterfeit $20 bill at a corner store prompted protests around the world and resulted in scattered violence in Minneapolis and beyond.
On Friday, Chauvin, who did not testify at his trial, removed his mask and turned toward the Floyd family, speaking only briefly as a result of what he called “some additional legal matters accessible” - an apparent reference to the federal civil rights trial he still faces.
“But very briefly, though, I do want to give my condolences to the Floyd family. There’s likely to be various other information in the future that might be of interest. And I hope things gives you some some peace of mind,” he said, without elaborating.
Defense attorney Eric Nelson asked that Chauvin be let off on probation, saying the former officer's “brain is full of what-ifs” from that day: “Imagine if I just didn't agree to go for the reason that day? Imagine if things had gone differently? Imagine if I never taken care of immediately that call? Imagine if? What if? Imagine if?”
Chauvin’s mother, Carolyn Pawlenty, appeared in court to plead for mercy on her behalf son, saying his reputation has been unfairly reduced to that of “an aggressive, heartless and uncaring person” and a racist.
“I can tell you that is far from the truth,” she told the judge. “I want this court to learn that none of the things are true and that my son is a great man.” She added: “Derek, I want you to learn I have always believed in your innocence, and I will never waver from that.”
“I will be here for you personally when you come home,” she said.
Floyd's members of the family addressed the court before sentencing, expressing sorrow over his death and requesting the maximum penalty, which was 40 years.
“We don’t want to see no more slaps on the wrist. We’ve experienced that already," said a tearful Terrence Floyd, among Floyd's brothers.
Floyd's nephew Brandon Williams said: “Us is forever broken.” And Floyd's 7-year-old daughter, Gianna, in a video played in court, said that if she could say something to her father now, it could be: “I miss you and and I love you.”
Prosecutor Matthew Frank, in asking the judge to exceed the sentencing guidelines, said “tortured may be the right word” for what the officer did to Floyd.
“This is simply not a momentary gunshot, punch to the face. That is 9½ minutes of cruelty to a guy who was simply helpless and just begging for his life," Frank said.
The concrete barricades, razor wire and National Guard patrols at the courthouse during Chauvin's three-week trial in the spring were gone Friday, reflecting an easing of tensions since the verdict in April.
Before the sentencing, the judge denied Chauvin’s obtain a new trial. The defense had argued that the extreme publicity tainted the jury pool and that the trial must have been moved from Minneapolis.
The judge also rejected a defense request for a hearing into possible juror misconduct. Nelson had accused a juror of not being candid during jury selection because he didn’t mention his participation in a march last summer to honor the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Prosecutors countered the juror have been open about his views.
Philip Stinson, a criminal justice professor at Bowling Green State University, said 11 non-federal law officers, including Chauvin, have already been convicted of murder for on-duty deaths since 2005. The penalties for the nine who were sentenced before Chauvin ranged from from six years, nine months, alive behind bars, with the median being 15 years.
With Chauvin’s sentencing, the Floyd family and Black America witnessed something of a rarity: In the tiny number of instances where officers accused of brutality or other misconduct against Black persons have gone to trial, the list of acquittals and mistrials is longer compared to the set of sentencings after conviction.
Recently, the acquittals have included officers tried in the deaths of Philando Castile in suburban Minneapolis and Terence Crutcher in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Two mistrials were declared over the death of Samuel Dubose in Cincinnati.
“That’s why the world has watched this trial, because it is a rare occurrence,” said Arizona-based civil rights attorney Benjamin Taylor, who has represented victims of police brutality. “Everybody knows that doesn’t happen each day.”
Chauvin has been held since his conviction at the state's maximum-security prison in Oak Park Heights, where he has been kept in a cell by himself for his own protection, his meals taken to him.
The three other officers involved with Floyd's arrest are scheduled for trial in March on state charges of aiding and abetting both murder and manslaughter. They will also stand trial with Floyd on the federal civil rights charges. No date has been set for that trial.
Source: japantoday.com