Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was convicted on all counts Tuesday of the death of George Floyd, whose murder sparked worldwide protests and reckoning in the US. After about a day of deliberations, the jury found Chauvin guilty of accidental second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter.
Judge Peter Cahill read the verdict at the high-security Hennepin County Government Center in downtown Minneapolis, where the trial began last month. Cheers came from the crowd of peaceful protesters gathered outside.
Chauvin responded little after the verdict was announced. Judge Cahill announced that his bail had been withdrawn and that Chauvin was being taken away in handcuffs.
Cahill said the sentencing will take place in about eight weeks.
The jury – consisting of six whites, four black people and two multiracial people – heard 13 days of sometimes emotional testimonials. The jury was separated during the deliberations, but not during the earlier part of the trial.
In his closing argument, prosecutor Steve Schleicher urged jurors to focus on the video in which Chauvin presses his knee into Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes.
“Believe your eyes,” said Schleicher. ‘Unreasonable violence, knocking him to the ground – that’s what killed him. This was murder. ‘
Schleicher said Chauvin showed “indifference” to Floyd’s pleas and continued to restrain the man even after he failed to respond, ignoring the bystanders who urged him to calm down.
“This case is exactly what you thought when you first saw it – when you first saw the video,” he said. ‘That’s exactly it. It’s exactly what you saw with your eyes. It’s exactly what you knew. It’s exactly what you felt in your stomach. It is what you know in your heart now. This wasn’t police, this was murder. ‘
In his closing argument, attorney Eric Nelson said the state has not proven his case beyond a reasonable doubt and has not been able to definitively demonstrate how Floyd died.
He said that while the state convened a series of experts to testify that positional asphyxiation was the cause of Floyd’s death, it “stands in the way of reason and common sense” to suggest that Floyds drug use and heart disease were not involved, Nelson said. .
Nelson has argued that a combination of Floyd’s underlying heart disease, adrenaline, and the fentanyl and methamphetamine he had taken before the arrest amounted to a fatal combination. He called the case ‘tragic’ but said it was an example of ‘agents doing their job in a very stressful situation’.
In Minnesota, second-degree murder carries a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison. Third-degree murder is punishable by up to 25 years in prison. Second degree manslaughter is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
But the punishment guidelines recommend less time for offenders with no criminal history.
In that case, the suggested sentence range for accidental second-degree murder and third-degree murder is the same – from just over 10 and a half years to 15 years in prison. The recommended median sentence is 12 and a half years – the same sentence handed over to Mohamed Noor in 2019, a former Minneapolis police officer who was convicted of third-degree murder for firing a shot from his police car and murdering a woman who called the emergency number.
A person convicted of second-degree manslaughter with no criminal record would likely spend about four years in prison.
In the Chauvin case, prosecutors have introduced a series of “aggravating factors” that could add extra time to Chauvin’s sentence. They include committing a crime in front of a child – the youngest bystander to witness Floyd’s fatal arrest was 9 years old – and using police power to commit a crime.
The other three officers involved are charged with complicity and are expected to be tried jointly in August.