Derek Chauvin Receives Federal Sentence of 21 Years for Violating George Floyd's Civil Rights

Derek Chauvin received a federal sentence of 21 years in prison on Thursday, after previously pleading guilty to “willfully depriving” George Floyd of his constitutional rights.

Ahead of the sentencing, per the Associated Press, prosecutors had pushed for Chauvin to receive a sentence of 25 years, marking the highest end of a sentencing range the former Minneapolis cop had agreed to as part of a plea deal in December.

“Defendant Chauvin has pleaded guilty to two federal civil rights violations, one of which led to the tragic loss of George Floyd’s life,” Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said when announcing the deal last year. “While recognizing that nothing can repair the harm caused by such acts, the Justice Department is committed to holding accountable those who violate the Constitution, and to safeguarding the civil rights of all Americans.”

The agreement saw Chauvin—who was previously convicted at the state level of murdering Floyd—admitting that he “willfully violated Mr. Floyd’s constitutional right to be free from an officer’s use of unreasonable force” in May 2020 by holding his knee to Floyd’s neck. In the same agreement, Chauvin also admitted to having willfully violated a teen’s rights in connection with a separate 2017 incident in which, per the DOJ, he “held the juvenile by he throat” and hit him with a flashlight.

The April 2021 state conviction in Chauvin’s murder trial was followed in June by a sentence of 22 and a half years behind bars. Prosecutors had pushed for 30. Per AP, Chauvin’s federal sentence—as detailed in the plea agreement—is expected to be served simultaneously with his state sentence, albeit in a federal facility.