Four years ago, video of George Floyd’s murder rocked the nation and forced Americans to reckon with the racism and injustice that Black people have and still face in the U.S.
After former Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for over nine minutes, Black Lives Matter protests drove people of all races and creeds out of their houses and into the streets to stand against police brutality and stand with the Black community.
Chauvin was convicted by a jury on charges of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. He has attempted to appeal his conviction and 22-year prison sentence multiple times.
In November, Supreme Court justices let Chauvin’s conviction stand after his initial appeal to the highest court in Minnesota failed.
Ex-officer Thomas Lane was convicted in February 2022 of depriving Floyd of his constitutional rights by failing to provide medical care during the fatal arrest in the summer of 2020. Lane was sentenced to 2.5 years in federal prison. Lane was also handed down a three-year sentence on state charges of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. The former officer was serving his state penalty at the same time as his federal sentence in the Federal Correctional Institution Englewood in Littleton, Colorado.
He is set to be released from his Minnesota sentence and into supervision on August 20. Lane’s full sentence is scheduled to expire in August 2025.
Tou Thao, a former Minneapolis police officer who stopped concerned bystanders from intervening as one of his colleagues fatally knelt on George Floyd’s neck, was sentenced to 4 years and 9 months in prison in August. The sentencing comes after Hennepin County District Judge Peter Cahill found Thao guilty of aiding and abetting manslaughter in the 2020 killing of Floyd.
On the fourth anniversary of Floyd’s death, civil rights leaders remain frustrated with the lack of police reform. Nevertheless, we will continue to say his name and George Floyd’s legacy will live on.
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