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VOL. 10, NO. 15
Since 1996
CHAUVIN’S MURDER CONVICTION MET WITH CAUTIOUS OPTIMISM Former Minneapolis cop found guilty of killing George Floyd Terry MILLER tmiller@beaconmedianews.com
W
orldwide attention on the murder of George Floyd last summer ignited protests globally against police use of force and the murders of unarmed Black people. With the guilty verdict handed down Tuesday, former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin’s prison sentence of a possible 40 years can’t bring back Floyd, but it opens up a whole new dialog around police officers and how they deal with the public. “The murder conviction of a police officer is an exceedingly rare event,” according to The New York Times. “There have been only seven murder convictions of officers for fatal police shootings since 2005, according to Philip Stinson of Bowling Green State University. That suggests the chances of a killing by the police leading to a murder conviction are about one in 2,000.” The reaction from officials all over the country has been swift and poignant. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said he's "thankful for George Floyd’s family, friends, and loved ones that justice has been served.” "This guilty verdict serves as an official proclamation of what so many of us have known for nearly a year: George Floyd was murdered
The peaceful NAACP protest last year in Pasadena highlighted the importance of voting amid systemic racism. | Photo by Terry Miller / Beacon Media News
by an officer who was sworn to protect and serve," he said in a statement. Like many activists and leaders, Schumer warned not to "mistake" the verdict as “evidence that the persistent problem of police misconduct has been solved." Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., in a written statement said the verdict “brings accountability for the murder of George Floyd, who should and would
be alive right now were it not for a system that permits and too often excuses the use of excessive force – predominantly against Black people.” She, however, acknowledged that no verdict “can ever heal the wounds left by the loss of a loved one” and outlined some reforms. “We must spare any other family from feeling such a preventable loss, and that means passing criminal justice
reform,” she said. “Ending the use of dangerous tactics like choke holds and no-knock warrants and limiting the immunity that shields police from accountability for their actions are essential for ending police brutality, and that is why the Senate must follow the House’s lead and pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act today!” Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., the only Black Republican in
the chamber, said the guilty verdict provides "renewed confidence in the integrity of our justice system." The sentiment was echoed by Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, who said the outcome was proof “the justice system works.” However, not everyone agrees that the conviction is proof of a working justice system. Nekima Levy Armstrong, a civil rights attorney and
activist in Minneapolis, told NPR that though Chauvin’s conviction along with charges filed against Brooklyn Center Officer Kim Porter in the death of Daunte Wright signal a “huge paradigm shift,” it ultimately was not the justice system that produced these results. “This did not happen because the system worked. This happened because the SEE CHAUVIN'S MURDER PAGE2