On April 20, 2021, former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree murder, second-degree manslaughter & third-degree murder. Judge Peter A. Cahill revoked Derek Chauvin’s bail after he was sentenced for killing George Floyd. Although found guilty, Judge Peter Cahill said sentencing would take place in an estimated eight weeks.
Mr. Chauvin, who had been free on bail since Oct., was taken out of the court in handcuffs. He is currently in the custody of the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office. Chauvin was convicted nearly a year after the death of Mr. Floyd sparked one of the largest civil rights protests in decades.
For many, the charging of Chauvin called for celebration.
“True justice requires that we come to terms with the fact that Black Americans are treated differently, every day,” former President Barack Obama said. “It requires us to recognize that millions of our friends, family, and fellow citizens live in fear that their next encounter with law enforcement could be their last,” he continued. “And it requires us to do the sometimes thankless, often difficult, but always necessary work of making the America we know more like the America we believe in.”
“While today’s verdict may have been a necessary step on the road to progress, it was far from a sufficient once,” Obama said. “We cannot rest.”