US COP FOUND GUILTY OF THIRD DEGREE MURDER OF GEORGE FLOYD

In a landmark verdict, US jury finds former cop Derek Chauvin guilty of murdering George Floyd in 2020

WASHINGTON: After a high-profile trial, followed closely in America and around the world, a jury has held former US police officer Derek Chauvin guilty of all three charges over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last year -- including unintentionally killing the Black man -which had sparked a global wave of anti-racism protests.

Soon after the verdict was delivered in Minneapolis, US President Joe Biden called it a “giant step forward” in the fight against systemic racism, and said Floyd’s killing was a “a murder in the full light of day”.

Floyd’s death under Chauvin’s knee outside a Minneapolis grocery store on May 25, 2020, had triggered countrywide protests.

Chauvin could face up to 40 years in prison.

WASHINGTON: After a high-profile trial, followed closely in America and around the world, a jury has held former US police officer Derek Chauvin guilty of all three charges over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last year - including unintentionally killing the Black man - which had sparked a global wave of anti-racism protests.

Soon after the verdict was delivered in Minneapolis, US President Joe Biden called it a “giant step forward” in the fight against systemic racism, and said Floyd’s killing was a “a murder in the full light of day, and it ripped the blinders off for the whole world to see the (racism)”, which he said was “a stain on our nation’s soul”.

Floyd’s death under Chauvin’s knee outside a Minneapolis grocery store on May 25, 2020 had triggered countrywide protests and outrage that had turned violent in the initial days with the National Guard being deployed to various parts of the US.

In Minneapolis, a 12-member jury of six white people and six people of colour held Chauvin guilty of unintentional seconddegree murder, which is punishable with up to 40 years in prison; third-degree murder, which is unintentional murder caused by the use of an eminently dangerous act, punishable with up to 25 years in jail; and secondary manslaughter, which is culpable negligence creating an unreasonable risk.

Sentencing is expected in about two months’ time, with Chauvin staring at a lengthy jail term. The former cop looked on with a frown as judge Peter Cahill read out the verdict in a Minneapolis courtroom. After that, Chauvin was taken away in handcuffs.