25 June 2021
Judge Peter Cahill will decide Friday how long ex-Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin should spend behind bars for murdering George Floyd.
State of play: Chauvin's attorney, Eric Nelson, has argued that his client should only receive probation as he was part of a "broken system." State prosecutors are asking for a 30-year sentence.
- Minnesota's sentencing guidelines for second-degree murder recommend 12.5 years, though the maximum for the charge is 40 years. Since Cahill found four aggravating factors, he can depart upward from the 12.5-year guideline.
- It's expected that two-thirds of the sentence will be served behind bars, with the other third on supervised release. Chauvin is 45.
What they're saying: Most legal experts predict the Hennepin County District Court judge will go well beyond 12.5 years, but not all the way to 40.
- Criminal defense attorney Joe Tamburino of Caplan & Tamburino told Axios he expects 25-30 years.
The intrigue: Chauvin, who hasn't yet spoken publicly about what happened the day of Floyd's death, will have a chance to speak Friday on his own behalf.
Tamburino thinks Chauvin will make a statement, adding that he would advise the former officer to do so if he were his attorney. But don't expect an explanation.
- "I think he will speak, but it'll be very, very short," Tamburino said. "If he does, he'll say that he's sorry, he didn't mean to do it and he's very sad about the whole situation ... Other than that I don't think he's going to say anything."
But many experts don't think he will speak, arguing that he doesn't want to say anything that could be used in his appeal or in the federal civil rights case against him.
- "It's a difficult position because when people are convicted, they often want to maintain their innocence and prove their right to appeal," former Hennepin County chief public defender Mary Moriarity told USA Today. "But one of the things a judge is looking for in considering a sentence is whether the person convicted takes responsibility for their actions and expressed remorse."
Yes, but: Cahill already has a pretty good idea of how long he will sentence Chauvin, Tamburino said.
- "Judge Cahill has spent an enormous amount of time on this case and knows the case up, down and sideways. There is no way that he hasn't made up his mind," Tamburino said.
Where to watch: CourtTV will again stream the proceedings, which begin at 1:30pm.
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.