A trial judge sentenced fired police officer Derek Chauvin to 22 1/2 years for the murder of George Floyd.
Before handing down the sentence, Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill said he is basing the prison time on the law and not on emotion from the family or the community.
The judge went on to say the sentence was for the greater conviction of second degree murder. According to Minnesota state law, the other two convictions of third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter were lesser crimes and therefore not considered.
Chauvin spoke on his own behalf at the sentencing and said, “I want to give my condolences to the Floyd family.”
The sentencing came more than a year after the widely shared cellphone video captured Chauvin pressing his knee on the neck of Floyd for more than nine minutes, killing him.
Hours before the hearing, the judge denied Chauvin’s motion for a new trial, saying his attorney failed to prove abuses from the court as well as prosecutorial or juror misconduct.
