It was clear from the video that Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin did not believe he would ever get punished for planting a knee on George Floyd’s neck for almost ten minutes until the 46-year-old man stopped breathing.
After all, the 45-year-old cop had received 18 complaints against him during his 19-year career with the Minneapolis Police Department, but only two of those complaints were ever sustained.
In fact, he was never disciplined for a 2017 incident in which he planted his knee on the neck of a 14-year-old who like Floyd, pleaded with Chauvin that he was unable to breathe.
But the video from March 25, 2020 showing Chauvin planting his knee on Floyd’s neck went viral almost immediately after it was recorded by 17-year-old Darnella Frazier, shocking the world at a time when most people were confined to their homes because of the pandemic, prompting even some police chiefs to speak out against Chauvin’s actions which is something we hardly ever see and eventually leading to a second-degree conviction against Chauvin.
Moments ago, Chauvin was sentenced to 270 months in prison by Judge Peter Cahill who earlier in the afternoon denied Chauvin’s request for a new trial.
Judge Cahill released a 26-page memo explaining his decision which you can read here.
Chauvin in the second Minnesota cop to be sentenced for murdering a citizen in the line of duty. In 2019, Minneapolis police officer Mohamed Noor was sentenced to twelve-and-a-half years for killing Justine Ruszczyk.
Watch the original video below.
