In the final stretch of the infamous murder of George Floyd, Derek Chauvin faces a massive discrepancy in his suggested sentencing coming in just a few weeks. Convicted of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter for the death of Floyd, the state prosecution has publicly filed a memorandum aiming for a sentence of 30 years in prison. Meanwhile, Chauvin’s defense team is asking for an extensively reduced sentence consisting of probation in addition to time-served.
Chauvin earned his triple felony when a jury found him guilty of directly causing Floyd’s death by kneeling on his neck for more than 9 minutes (continuing after the death). But due to his previously clean slate of a criminal record and career as a police officer, the defense insists the jury takes into consideration who they would be giving a near end-of-life sentence to.
Additionally, they are claiming he will be a target in prison and victimized on top of already serving time. However, asking for probation for one of the highest-profile killings of the millennia on the grounds Chauvin could possibly face unfair or dangerous conditions in prison is going to take miracle-level work from the legal defense team to win on.
In stark contrast to such a light sentence, the prosecution has filed to suggest that Chauvin spend at least 30 years in prison. They firmly believe the impact of the murder has been too extensive for the victim, the victim’s family, and the community to let the punishment of probation suffice.
For the prosecution, this punishment will more adequately fit the crime and they are unwavering in their endeavor for this outcome. Floyd’s death has been paramount in the BLM movement that has swept the nation and caused intense investigations into the hushed modern-day era of racism as well as police brutality.
