Guwahati News Desk: After a tempestuous trial, a Minnesota judge on Friday sentenced the ex-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin with 22 years and 6 months (270 months approx) in prison for the heinous murder of George Floyd.
The sentence was delivered by Judge Peter A. Cahill of Hennepin County District Court, after a viral video of May 25, 2020, which captured Chauvin pressing knee on Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes in the Minneapolis street. The crime attracted much attention globally igniting massive protests against police brutality and racial crimes against black people under the slogan, “Black Lives Matter”.
The ex-cop was charged with 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.
Meanwhile, Prosecutor Matthew Frank requested the judge to exceed the sentence to 30 years saying “tortured is the right word” for what the officer did to the victim.
Frank also added, “This is not a momentary gunshot, punch to the face. This is 9½ minutes of cruelty to a man who was helpless and just begging for his life.”
Breaking his long silence in the courtroom, Chauvin (45), after the sentencing has offered condolences to Floyd’s family and said, “But very briefly, though, I do want to give my condolences to the Floyd family. There’s going to be some other information in the future that would be of interest. And I hope things will give you some peace of mind.”
According to research conducted by criminal justice professor Philip M. Stinson from Bowling Green State University, Chauvin is one of 11 police officers since 2005 who has been charged with on-duty killings.
