Derek Chauvin got another 21 years in prison for violating George Floyd’s civil rights

Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, convicted last year of killing African-American George Floyd, was sentenced Thursday to 21 years in prison on separate federal civil rights charges against Floyd. The judge called the former cop’s actions “egregious.”

Chauvin, who pleaded guilty in December, is already serving a 22-and-a-half-year sentence in a Minnesota state prison for Floyd’s murder. According to the court’s verdict, he will serve both sentences at the same time, but he will be transferred to a federal prison.

District Judge Paul Magnuson read the sentence, saying he would credit Chauvin for the seven months he had already served in prison, excluding them from his 21-year federal sentence. His federal prison sentence will be followed by five years of parole.

According to a reporter who attended the hearing, the judge called Chauvin’s actions offensive and egregious.

Chauvin, acknowledged that he violated Floyd’s rights by subjecting him to an “unreasonable arrest,” during which the African-American died. Floyd’s death led to protests in many U.S. cities and around the world against police brutality and racism.

The judge also ordered Chauvin to pay pecuniary compensation, the amount of which has yet to be determined.

At his trial last year, Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. People sentenced to prison for felonies are usually released on parole in Minnesota after serving two-thirds of their terms.

Chauvin pleaded guilty to violating Floyd’s civil rights as part of a plea bargain. In the agreement he signed, he pleaded guilty for the first time to Floyd’s death. Federal prosecutors had sought a 25-year sentence for Chauvin.