Derek Chauvin appears in court to plead guilty to civil rights abuses
Derek Chauvin pleads guilty to civil rights abuses for murdering George Floyd: Ex-cop will have another three years added to his 22 year sentence
- Chauvin is in federal court in Minneapolis to plead guilty to three civil rights violations for murdering George Floyd and arresting a teenager in 2017
- He will be sentenced to 25 years in prison, that he will serve at the same time as his current 22 year sentence for murder
- It means he will spend an extra three years in prison than previously thought
- As part of the deal, he also pleaded guilty to violating the rights of a black 14-year-old who he arrested in 2017
- In that case, he used a chokehold on the teenager and hit him with a flashlight
- Chauvin had been called to the teenager’s home by his mother who claimed he assaulted her
- Chauvin said the teen lay on his bedroom floor and ignored his verbal commands
Derek Chauvin has pleaded guilty to depriving George Floyd of his civil rights by killing him by kneeling on his neck for nine minutes last May as part of a plea deal with federal prosecutors that add another three years to his prison sentence.
Chauvin, 45, is already serving 22 years behind bars on state murder charges for murdering Floyd.
He was charged in May with violating Floyd’s civil rights when he killed him, a charge that carries a maximum sentence of life in prison or the death penalty. Federal prosecutors said they did not intend to seek the death penalty.
Initially, Chauvin pleaded not guilty but he changed his plea on Monday as part of a deal that will see him serve 25 years on the federal charge. It will be folded into his current sentence.
He will now be released from prison in 2046, instead of 2043, at the age of 70.
No cameras were allowed inside the federal courtroom, as is procedure for federal cases. Chauvin wore an orange jumpsuit and spoke only to acknowledge that he violated Floyd’s rights.
Derek Chauvin is shown at his state sentencing hearing in June. No cameras are allowed in the federal courtroom where he is today pleading guilty to civil rights abuses
Chauvin also pleaded guilty to violating the civil rights of a 14-year-old boy who he hit with a flashlight and restrained in 2017.
Chauvin admitted violating George Floyd’s civil rights when he killed him by standing on his neck for nine minutes in May 2020
Floyd died as a result of Chauvin kneeling on his neck for nine-and-a-half minutes in May 2020.
He was arresting him for allegedly using a fake $20 bill.
Three other cops – Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao were also charged with aiding and abetting Chauvin.
Their state trial is due to begin in March next year, and they have also been charged with federal civil rights abuses.
The 2017 incident involving the teenager occurred after the boy’s mother called police claiming she had been assaulted by him and his sister during an argument over a cellphone.
Chauvin said he walked into the boy’s bedroom to find him the lying on the floor, and that he ignored his ‘verbal commands’.
Prosecutors wanted to include it in his George Floyd trial to show that he had a pattern of behavior that was racist towards black people, and included excessive force.
The judge denied their request, and did not allow for it to be presented to the jury.
The boy in that case is now 18. After his beating from Chauvin, he had to go to the hospital for stitches.
The mother told doctors that the boy had mental disabilities.
George Floyd’s brothers Philonise and Rodney are pictured at the federal courthouse on Wednesday morning to attend Chauvin’s plea hearing
Floyd family attorney, Jeff Storms (L), and Philonise Floyd, George Floyd’s brother, arrive at US District Court in St. Paul, Minnesota, on December 15, 2021
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