Derek Chauvin changes his plea

Police officer Derek Chauvin, convicted of killing African-American George Floyd, has pleaded guilty in court after all. That could affect his sentence.

Olivia Miller Olivia Miller
Dec 15, 2021 - 17:52
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Derek Chauvin changes his plea

Derek Chauvin pleads guilty to violating George Floyd's civil rights

Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has now pleaded guilty in federal court in Minnesota after all to violating the civil rights of George Floyd when he killed him during a police operation. In doing so, he reverses his September plea of not guilty.


A federal prosecutor told The New York Times that under an agreement reached with Chauvin, prosecutors will ask the judge to sentence him to 25 years in prison. That means the guilty plea would only increase his existing sentence by about two and a half years. Chauvin faces a maximum sentence of life in prison. Ultimately, the judge will decide how much time he spends in prison.

Derek Chauvin has already been sentenced to 22.5 years in prison for the murder of George Floyd on charges of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and manslaughter. His April sentencing in federal court was seen by many as a landmark ruling on the disproportionate use of police force against black Americans. The video, which shows Chauvin kneeling on the neck of the handcuffed Floyd for more than nine minutes during the arrest, caused worldwide outrage—and sparked one of the largest protest movements in the United States in decades.

Because of the guilty plea, moreover, Chauvin may now serve his sentence in a federal prison, which is generally considered safer and could separate him from prisoners he arrested as a police officer. The confession also spares Chauvin, the family of George Floyd and Minneapolis residents another trial, although court cases are still open.

Chauvin and three other officers—Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao - arrested Floyd in May 2020 on suspicion of using a counterfeit $20 bill. Lane, Kueng and Thao face charges of aiding and abetting in the killing of Floyd in a trial that began in March. In addition to the state charges, all four officers were charged at the federal level in May with depriving Floyd of his civil rights by failing to provide him with medical care. Chauvin was also charged at the federal level with violating Floyd's right to be free from unreasonable seizure and unreasonable force by a police officer.