by Mary Stroka
U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson has accepted Derek Chauvin’s plea agreement and will sentence him to 20 to 25 years in prison, according to a one-page order issued Wednesday.
“At the change-of-plea hearing, the Court deferred accepting Defendant’s plea pending issuance of the preliminary presentence investigation report,” Magnuson said. “That report has now issued, and acceptance of the plea is appropriate.”
Former Minneapolis police officer Chauvin will serve the federal sentence concurrently with the 22.5-year state sentence issued in June 2021. He was convicted in April of second-degree unintentional murder in the May 25, 2020, death of George Floyd that a bystander caught on videotape.
Chauvin is appealing the state conviction. The brief his attorneys submitted April 25 said, among other arguments, that Chauvin’s motion to change venue should have been accepted, there was prejudice, jurors demonstrated bias against Chauvin and the judge allowed cumulative opinion on the use of force.
Chauvin pleaded guilty Dec. 15 to federal charges that he abused his authority to violate George Floyd’s rights in December 2021, following a plea deal for prosecutors to seek a 25-year sentence instead of life in prison.
Pre-sentence investigations are still underway for the other three ex-officers convicted for charges regarding the murder. They were charged in February in federal court with failing to provide medical aid to Floyd, who allegedly tried to spend a counterfeit $20 bill. Thao and Keung were also charged with failing to intervene in Chauvin’s unreasonable use of force. Lane had asked Floyd to reposition.
The three are due for a state court trial beginning June 13 on charges of aiding and abetting Chauvin in the murder of Floyd, AP reported. They rejected plea deals regarding the state charges.
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Mary Stroka is a contributor to The Center Square.
