Derek Chauvin gets 21 years in federal prison for violating George Floyd’s civil rights

• Former police officer Derek Chauvin gets a federal sentence for George Floyd’s murder.
• The agreement extends the ex-cop’s prison time but with more favorable conditions in a federal prison.
• Chauvin appeard in US district court.

Derek Chauvin was sentenced on Thursday, July 7 for violating George Floyd’s civil rights in a deal that extended the former Minneapolis police officer’s time behind bars while possibly garnering him better conditions in federal prison, according to The Associated Press.

Chauvin accepted a sentence of 20 to 25 years in his December guilty plea to a federal charge in Floyd’s murder. US District Judge Paul Magnuson made the final decision, with prosecutors seeking the full 25 years on the grounds that Chauvin’s actions were cold-blooded and unnecessary.

Derek Chauvin to received 21 more years for violating Floyd’s civil rights

The defense asked for 20 years, saying Chauvin accepts responsibility for what he did, and has already received a 22½-year prison sentence in state court for killing Floyd. Attorney Eric Nelson wrote that Chauvin’s «remorse will be evident before this court,» suggesting that Chauvin would speak at Thursday’s hearing.

Former federal prosecutor Tom Heffelfinger said a judge could take such a statement into account during sentencing. “This is your chance to say, ‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to, I didn’t think, or whatever,’” Heffelfinger said. “In federal court, it is very advantageous for the inmate to be repentant and to show remorse, even more so than in a state sentence.”

Chauvin made strong statements

Chauvin briefly addressed Floyd’s family at his state sentencing hearing in May 2021, offering his condolences. Family members of Floyd gave impact statements at the time and were entitled to do so on Thursday. Lawyers for the family did not respond to messages seeking comments on their plans.

In filing his federal plea, Chauvin admitted for the first time that he kept his knee on Floyd’s neck, even as the man pleaded, «I can’t breathe,» and then became unresponsive. Chauvin admitted that he willfully deprived Floyd of his right to be free from unreasonable seizure, including unreasonable force by a police officer, during the May 2020 arrest.

Is the former police officer’s future uncertain?

Floyd’s murder sparked protests in Minneapolis and around the world in a reckoning over police brutality and racism. For his own protection, Chauvin has been held in solitary confinement in a 10-by-10-foot room in the state’s maximum-security prison. He is allowed out for an average of an hour a day to exercise.

Defense attorney Eric Nelson said in a court filing last month that Chauvin may never be placed in the general population of a prison because of the risks of him becoming a target. Chauvin’s plea agreement requires that he serve the federal sentence concurrently with the state sentence, and that he serve it in federal prison. He is expected to serve more time behind bars than he would have faced with the state sentence alone.

How long could Derek Chauvin spend in jail?

However, experts say Chauvin could be safer and live with fewer restrictions in a federal prison. The security level and his final destination will depend on the US Bureau of Prisons, which could send him anywhere in the country. Chauvin would run the risk in the general population of a Minnesota state prison of meeting inmates he had arrested or investigated. While he can’t entirely escape his notoriety in a federal prison elsewhere, it’s unlikely he’ll run into any inmates he has a direct connection to.

If the office decides that he is safe enough among the general population, he will have more opportunities to move around the facility, work, and participate in programs. With credit for good time in the federal system, he could serve between 17 and 21¼ years behind bars, assuming the judge sticks to the range of the plea deal. In the state system alone, Chauvin could have been eligible for parole after about 15 years.