(Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
Guilty. Guilty. Guilty
Guilty on all three counts.
The jury of five men and seven women deliberated for four hours Monday afternoon and resumed deliberating Tuesday morning, according to the court. Six of the jurors are White, four are Black and two are multiracial, according to information released by the court. They were sequestered from the public during deliberations.
Chauvin, 45, has pleaded not guilty to second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. The deliberations began after three weeks of testimony in one of the most closely watched cases of the Black Lives Matter era. The prosecution’s case against Chauvin featured 38 witnesses as they sought to show the former Minneapolis Police officer committed murder when he kneeled on the neck and back of Floyd, handcuffed and prone on the street, for 9 minutes and 29 seconds on May 25, 2020.
Those words of “Guilty” rang out like a clear bell announcing the end of a fight.
And for Black people, for centuries it has been a fight.
Last year, when the horrific video of Derek Chauvin kneeling on George Floyd’s neck went viral it showed the clear disdain for the life of George Floyd after kneeling on his neck for over 9 minutes with his hand in his pockets–we knew then what the world knew: he was guilty.
After seeing that video, people marched, kneeled, organized all over the world. There were Asians, Whites, Hispanics, people from the UK, Austrailia, and other parts of the world who spoke out about this injustice.
But, if you were Black and watched the video, saw the evidence and heard the outcry of the man, you knew in your heart he was guilty, but there was still a part of your that believed it could go the other way.
So many before Derek Chauvin have gotten off and continued to live. Not Guilty. Not Guilty. Not Guilty.
It’s like it’s been ingrained in us to hear it and say “I knew it. I knew that justice would be for us.” But this time is different.
“Painfully earned justice has finally arrived to the Floyd family,” attorney Benjamin Crump issued in a statement. “But it does not end here. We have to make the George Floyd Justice in Policing enforcing act into law.”
George Floyd’s brother, Philonise, spoke in advance of the verdict to let people know that although this is a monumental trial, this is also a heart matter for the family.
“It’s gonna be alright,” he said to CNN reporter Sara Sidner. “It’s a historic case for America but a deeply personal case for us.”
(Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin mugshot / Photo by Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office via Getty Images)
“It has been an emotional cinema picture, everyone watching around the world,” Philonise said. “We just want everybody to be peaceful, but at the same time I can’t stop people from doing the things that they’re doing because people are in pain, they’re hurt,” he said. “Daunte Wright was just killed 10 miles away from where we were in the courtroom. We just want everybody to get it together and understand we can live with each other in unity. And we stand in solidarity with everybody across America.”
Philonise Floyd testified as a character witness during the trial earlier this month.
A verdict has been reached in Derek Chauvin’s trial in the death of George Floyd, according to a notice posted by the court on the Hennepin County Court’s website. The jurors’ decision will be read in open court between 4:30 and 5 p.m. ET, the court said.
The jury of five men and seven women deliberated for four hours Monday afternoon and resumed deliberating Tuesday morning, according to the court. They are being sequestered from the public during deliberations.
(Brother of George Floyd, Philonise / Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Chauvin could face up to 40 years in prison for second-degree murder, up to 25 years for third-degree murder and up to 10 years for second-degree manslaughter.
The actual sentences would likely be much lower, though, because Chauvin has no prior convictions. Minnesota’s sentencing guidelines recommend about 12.5 years in prison for each murder charge and about four years for the manslaughter charge.
As a community and as a people, we can’t let up. There is more of an opportunity to come together right now than ever before.
Stand up Kings and Queens, the world is watching.
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