Derek Chauvin Sentenced to 22.5 Years In Prison For Murder of George Floyd
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who was convicted earlier this year of second-degree unintentional murder in the death of George Floyd, was sentenced Friday to 22.5 years in prison. Before the sentence hearing, Floyd's family read impact statements and asked the judge for the maximum sentence for Chauvin; Chauvin also spoke briefly, offered condolences to Floyd's family. Prosecutors asked for a 30-year sentence, arguing that Chauvin's actions "traumatized Mr. Floyd’s family...and his conduct shocked the nation’s conscience.” Chauvin's lawyer asked the court for probation and time served, arguing that placing Chauvin with other inmates may make him a target. Hennepin County District Court Judge Peter Cahill delivered the sentence, and said that while the sentence "is not based on emotion or sympathy," he also acknowledged "the deep and tremendous pain that all the families are feeling, especially the Floyd family.” Chauvin will also face federal civil rights charges; the three other officers involved the Floyd's death await a separate manslaughter trial.
Chauvin's sentence was widely covered throughout the spectrum. Many outlets focused on the details and history of Chauvin's trial; some outlets recounted how Floyd's death launched a nationwide movement against police brutality and racism. Some outlets on the left highlighted other cases of police shootings; one voice stated that Chauvin's sentencing was a "rare rebuke by the criminal justice system against a police officer who killed someone while on duty."
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Center
Chauvin sentenced to 22.5 years in prison for murder of George FloydFormer Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was sentenced to 22 1/2 years in prison on Friday afternoon for the murder of George Floyd last May.
Handed down by Hennepin County District Court Judge Peter Cahill, the sentence was greater than what legal experts predicted.
“Determining the appropriate sentence in any case and in this case is a legal analysis. It's applying the rule of law to the facts of an individual and specific case,” Cahill said from the Hennepin County courthouse just after 2:30 p.m. “This sentence is not based on emotion or sympathy. At the same...
From the Left
Derek Chauvin receives 22 and a half years for murder of George Floyd.Derek Chauvin, the former police officer convicted of murder in the death of George Floyd, was sentenced on Friday to 22 and a half years in prison, bringing a measure of closure to a case that set off waves of protest across the nation over police abuse of Black people.
The sentence, delivered by Judge Peter A. Cahill of Hennepin County District Court, came more than a year after a widely shared cellphone video captured Mr. Chauvin pressing his knee on the neck of Mr. Floyd for more than nine...
From the Right
Derek Chauvin sentencing: Ex-Minneapolis cop sentenced to 22.5 years in prison in murder of George FloydFormer Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin received a 270-month prison sentence Friday for second-degree unintentional murder in the death of George Floyd last spring.
Minnesota District Court Judge Peter Cahill said a 22-page sentencing memorandum would explain his reasoning on the sentence in greater detail.
"Most of it’s going to be in writing, 22-page memorandum – to emphasize the fact that determining the appropriate sentence in any case and in this case is a legal analysis," he said. "It’s applying the rule of law to the facts of an individual and specific case. As opposed...
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