Derek Chauvin pleads guilty to civil rights charges in George Floyd's killing

The former Minneapolis police officer agreed to a plea deal that recommends he serve 25 years, instead of life, in a federal prison.

Derek Chauvin pleaded guilty to civil rights violations in two federal cases Wednesday morning in St. Paul, ending a bitter and winding legal chapter for the former Minneapolis police officer who killed George Floyd in May 2020 and ignited a global outcry.

Reversing his initial not-guilty pleas, Chauvin told U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson he abused his power as a police officer to deprive Floyd and, before that, a 14-year-old boy of their constitutional rights to be free from "unreasonable force." In separate encounters several years apart, he pinned both down with his knee on their necks.

Chauvin still awaits sentencing for the federal felonies, which come on top of the 221⁄2 years in prison he's serving for murder and manslaughter convictions in state court for Floyd's killing.

https://www.startribune.com/derek-chauvin-pleads-guilty-to-federal-civil-rights-charges-george-floyd-killing-minneapolis-police/600127329/