George Floyd Case Verdict - Conviction of Derek Chauvin

Why in news?

Derek Chauvin, a former Minneapolis police officer, was found guilty of murdering an unarmed African-American man, George Floyd in May 2020.

What is the case about?

Mr. Chauvin pinned Mr. Floyd’s neck to the roadside with his knee until he stopped breathing.
Mr. Floyd’s final words, “I can’t breathe”, became the clarion call of a massive wave of street protests across the U.S.
His murder ignited a nationwide storm of protest against police brutality and a worldwide outpouring of anger at America’s racial injustice.
The jury of six white people and six Black or multiracial ones came back with its verdict after about 10 hours of deliberations over two days.
Chauvin was found guilty on all charges: second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
All three charges are for an encounter that lasted around nine minutes.
His bail was immediately revoked and he was led away with his hands cuffed behind his back.
Chauvin, 45, could be sent to prison for decades.

Why is the verdict significant?

In most such cases, charges have been rare, and convictions rarer still.
Analysis of these cases suggested that most often charges were dropped, or plea bargains and civil settlements agreed.
Only in a minority of such instances (of what many consider police brutality against people of colour) does it result in convictions at trial.
Four years under Mr. Trump did little to build, across communities, bridges of the sort necessary to bring about a greater measure of empathy and nuance in policing.
Now, Mr. Biden’s ambitious police reform bill is expected to go a long way in ensuring justice.
The bill bans chokeholds, offers qualified immunity from lawsuits for law enforcement and creates national standards for policing towards greater accountability.

What are the notable features?

The jury decided that Chauvin caused Floyd’s death and that his actions were not that of a reasonable officer.
Prosecutors didn’t have to prove Chauvin’s restraint was the sole cause of Floyd’s death.
They only had to prove that his conduct was a “substantial causal factor” for the death and that his actions were unreasonable.
Because, Chauvin was authorised to use force as a police officer, as long as that force would be considered reasonable by an objective officer.
Second-degree unintentional murder - It’s also called felony murder.
To prove this count, prosecutors had to show that Chauvin killed Floyd while committing or trying to commit a felony — in this case, third-degree assault.
They didn’t have to prove Chauvin intended to kill Floyd, only that he intended to apply unlawful force that caused bodily harm.
Third-degree murder - For this count, jurors had to find Chauvin –

caused Floyd’s death through an action that was “eminently dangerous”
acted with a reckless disregard for and conscious indifference to the loss of life

Prosecutors tried to prove this through testimony about the dangers of subduing a handcuffed person in the prone position.
A police use-of-force trainer testified that officers are trained to avoid the neck when possible. What Chauvin did is not what he was trained to do.
Second-degree manslaughter - Prosecutors had to show that Chauvin caused Floyd’s death through culpable negligence that created an unreasonable risk.
They also had to show that he consciously took the chance of causing severe injury or death.

Source: The Hindu, The Indian Express