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      in US Politics

      George Floyd: will Derek Chauvin’s guilty verdict change US policing?

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      Oliver Laughland, the Guardian’s US southern bureau chief, covered the trial of former police officer Derek Chauvin, who was found guilty of the murder of George Floyd on Tuesday – a landmark moment in US criminal justice history. Oliver looks at what the verdict means for America

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      Former police officer Derek Chauvin has been convicted of murder for killing George Floyd by kneeling on his neck for more than nine minutes, a crime that prompted waves of protests in support of racial justice in the US and across the world. The jury swiftly and unanimously convicted Chauvin on Tuesday of all the charges he faced – second- and third-degree murder, and manslaughter – after concluding that the white former Minneapolis police officer killed the 46-year-old Black man in May through a criminal assault, by pinning him to the ground so he could not breathe. Anushka Asthana talks to the Guardian’s US southern bureau chief, Oliver Laughland, who has been in Minneapolis covering the trial. He discusses the case and whether the verdict will usher in police reforms. On Wednesday, US attorney general, Merrick Garland, announced that the Department of Justice would investigate the practices of the Minneapolis Police Department. More

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      in US Politics

      Celebrating Derek Chauvin’s conviction is not enough. We want to live | Derecka Purnell

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      A jury has found Derek Chauvin guilty of all charges against him for killing George Floyd, including unintentional second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. A judge remanded Chauvin in custody after the verdict and a cop quickly cuffed the dazed defendant to carry him out of the courtroom. Chauvin will remain in jail until his sentencing hearing in two months.Presidents did what presidents do after the criminal justice system seems to work for the people who it exploits, but this time with a twist. Neither Obama nor Biden considered the verdict justice, but rather accountability and “a step in the right direction”. Obama emphasized eliminating racial bias in policing and implementing concrete reforms for change; Biden explained that the verdict was a giant step forward towards justice in America.There are two fatal flaws with these statements. The first is that reforms cannot fix racial bias in policing because police was formed as a system of racial and economic control, and remains so. As I’ve written before: if Derek Chauvin were the kindest cop in Minnesota and did not have a biased bone in his body, he still would have been able to arrest George Floyd for any number of alleged illegal acts. Because of capitalism, racism and ableism, the darkest and poorest peoples in the United States are relegated to live precarious lives where they do what they can to survive, sometimes including breaking the law. Rather than eliminating the unjust conditions, cities and the federal government send in police to manage the inequality.Additionally, even if we could remove racial bias from police, this would not solve the underlying problems of inequality and exploitation. If it did, then there wouldn’t be so many poor, white people in prison. Last week, I watched a video of three cops arresting and slamming a 73-year-old white woman with dementia who was picking flowers on her way home. She’d forgotten to pay for her groceries at Walmart. Police dislocated her shoulder, and tied her hands and feet like a hog. She repeatedly cried that she wanted to go home and they chuckled at her. If removing racial bias in police is supposed to ensure that that Black people will be treated like white people under the law, then equal protection is completely insufficient for anyone’s freedom and safety.Additionally, we cannot expect cop convictions to save anyone’s lives because prior cop convictions did not even save George Floyd’s life. Thousands of cops have killed more than 10,000 people of all races between 2005 and 2017; only 82 cops have been charged with murder or manslaughter. According to criminologist Phil Stinson, only 19 cops were convicted and mostly on lesser charges in that time period. A judge sentenced former South Carolina cop Michael Slaeger to 20 years in prison in 2017 for shooting Walter Scott several times in the back. A judge sentenced former Chicago PD officer Jason Van Dyke in 2019 to a little over six years in prison for fatally shooting Laquan McDonald 16 times. Despite the increasing convictions, the police nationwide still kill about three people a day. Just a few years ago, Minnesota convicted a cop for a murder while on duty for the first time. Minneapolis police officer Mohamed Noor was sentenced to about 12 years. Why didn’t all of these convictions save the thousands of people who were killed after them? Why didn’t Chauvin get the message?The celebration of the conviction as “accountability” or “justice” that will send chills down the spines of police simply doesn’t comport with the law, which protects the police’s right not to think before they act. The US supreme court opined in Graham v Connor that cops “are often forced to make split-second judgments – in circumstances that are tense, uncertain, and rapidly evolving – about the amount of force that is necessary in a particular situation”. This means that police currently have the constitutional authority to quickly decide when to use force. Every now and then, a conviction will slip through the cracks and people will celebrate, similar to how slave patrols were punished and sometimes sent to prison for their mistreatment of slaves. But, the underlying power to be violent will remain virtually unchanged and many more people will die because of it.Even if we could remove racial bias from police, this would not solve the problems of inequality and exploitationTragically, we witnessed this on Tuesday. As the nation awaited the jury verdict’s reading against Chauvin, a white cop in Columbus, Ohio killed Ma’Khia Bryant, a 15-year-old Black girl. According to Bryant’s family, the teen reportedly called the police for help because older kids were trying to assault her. Police arrived during the altercation and shot Bryant four times.There will be calls for justice for Ma’Khia, just as there were calls for justice in the recent police killings of Daunte Wright in Minnesota and 13-year-old Adam Toledo in Chicago. Clearly cops did not get the message about justice because all of these victims were killed in the course of the Chauvin trial. But we will never know what accountability or justice means for George, Daunte, Adam or Ma’Khia because justice requires the participation of the people impacted by it. The dead cannot participate. Convictions only provide relief for the living, and they surely do not save lives. The question is: do we want convictions or do we want to live?If we want to live, then we must continue to join, support and create social movements and protests to end policing. Police abolition is not mere police absence. It is a political commitment and practice to recreate the society that thinks it needs police in the first place. People must avoid repeating the same tired reforms in the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act which does not undermine police power, and look to more transformational demands, such as those in the Breathe Act. We need abolition. Organizations like Critical Resistance, the Movement for Black Lives, Dream Defenders and various “defund the police” campaigns across the country are articulating ways to make change. We have to decide whether we have the will and imagination to join them.
      Derecka Purnell is a Guardian US columnist. She is the author of Becoming Abolitionists: Police, Protests, and the Pursuit of Freedom More

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      in Elections

      'We are able to breathe again': George Floyd’s family reacts to Derek Chauvin verdict – video

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      Members of George Floyd’s family choked back tears while speaking of their relief that the former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of murder in their brother’s death. ‘Today, we are able to breathe again,’ George Floyd’s brother Philonise Floyd told reporters. The Floyd family’s attorney, Benjamin Crump, said they were leaving the court knowing ‘that America is a better country’

      Derek Chauvin guilty verdict: Biden says ‘systemic racism is a stain on our nation’s soul’ – live
      Derek Chauvin found guilty of George Floyd’s murder
      The life of George Floyd: ‘He knew how to make people feel better’ More

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      Derek Chauvin found guilty of George Floyd’s murder and taken away in handcuffs – video

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      Derek Chauvin has been convicted of murder for killing George Floyd by kneeling on his neck for more than nine minutes, a crime that prompted a wave of protests in support of racial justice in the US and across the world. The jury swiftly and unanimously convicted Chauvin of all the charges he faced – second and third degree murder, and manslaughter – after concluding that the white former Minneapolis police officer killed the 46-year-old black man through a criminal assault by pinning him to the ground so he could not breathe properly. A lack of oxygen in turn caused brain damage, heart failure and death in May last year

      Derek Chauvin found guilty of George Floyd’s murder
      Derek Chauvin verdict: ex-police officer found guilty of George Floyd’s murder – live More

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      in US Politics

      Derek Chauvin verdict: ex-police officer found guilty of George Floyd’s murder – live

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      Key events

      Show

      5.08pm EDT
      17:08

      Chauvin guilty of manslaughter

      5.07pm EDT
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      Chauvin guilty of third-degree murder

      5.07pm EDT
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      Chauvin guilty of second-degree murder

      4.25pm EDT
      16:25

      Jurors reached verdict after nine hours of deliberations

      3.38pm EDT
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      Verdict reached in Derek Chauvin murder trial

      Live feed

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      5.50pm EDT
      17:50

      At a press conference after Derek Chauvin’s guilty verdict was read, Keith Ellison, Minnesota Attorney General, has thanked the community for giving his prosecutors the opportunity to pursue the case. Ellison has emphasized, however, that more work must be done.
      “I want to thank the community for giving us that time, and allowing us to do that work,” he says. “That long, hard, painstaking work has culminated today.”
      “I would not call today’s verdict justice, however, because justice implies true restoration, but it is accountability—which is the first step towards justice.”
      “George Floyd mattered,” he says. “He was loved by his family and his friends. His death shocked the conscience of our community, our country, the whole world,” Ellison also says. “But that isn’t why he mattered. He mattered because he was a human being.”
      “This has to end, we need to justice,” Ellison later says.
      “This verdict reminds us that we must make enduring enduring, systemic, societal change.”

      5.38pm EDT
      17:38

      The Council on American-Islamic Relations’s Minnesota chapter has commented on Derek Chauvin’s guilty verdict.
      Jaylani Hussein, CAIR Minnesota’s executive director, says in a statement: “We are encouraged by the jury’s decision to convict Derek Chauvin. It is by no means the end of our efforts to build a more just and equitable Minnesota and nation, but it is an important milestone on our journey and a step to healing deep, generational traumas.”
      “While today’s verdict is encouraging, it does not diminish the urgency with which we must continue our efforts to combat the epidemic of police violence in our communities,” Hussein’s statement says. “George Floyd received justice today in that courtroom, now we must continue advocating for justice for all, everywhere: in the legislature, where we’re fighting to pass bills to increase police oversight and end qualified immunity, in our own communities, where we come together to heal and build trust and mutual understanding, and in the streets, where every day we are organizing, marching, and strengthening our movement.”
      By the way, here’s a recap on what the charges meant:

      The Recount
      (@therecount)
      Here’s a rundown of what the prosecution has to prove to convict Chauvin of three charges: pic.twitter.com/RbQnh4mXol

      April 20, 2021

      Updated
      at 5.45pm EDT

      5.35pm EDT
      17:35

      We now have a pool report detailing the scene inside Judge Peter Cahill’s courtroom for the verdict in Derek Chauvin’s case.
      Philonise Floyd, George Floyd’s brother, was sitting “with his head bowed and his hands folded in front of his face, perhaps in prayer,” prior to the reading of the verdict.
      Cahill enters the courtroom around 4:04 pm local time. The jurors walk in, “all looking serious, none appearing teary,” per the pool report. As Cahill reads the verdict, which found Chauvin guilty on all counts, the former Minneapolis police officer “stares at the empty witness podium.”
      Cahill ultimately thanks jurors for “heavy duty jury service” and they leave. Chauvin stands, hands “hands clasped behind his back.” When a deputy handcuffs Chauvin, he doesn’t resist.
      Philonise Floyd hugs prosecutor Jerry Blackwell, Minnesota attorney general Keith Ellison, and the other prosecutors, the pool report says.
      Here is a tweet from Keith Boykin, which speaks for itself.

      Keith Boykin
      (@keithboykin)
      Derek Chauvin handcuffed. pic.twitter.com/D0KoTJllE6

      April 20, 2021

      Updated
      at 5.38pm EDT

      5.23pm EDT
      17:23

      The Guardian’s Lois Beckett is outside the Minneapolis courthouse where Judge Peter Cahill just announced a guilty verdict in Derek Chauvin’s murder case.
      Beckett reports that the crowd has shouted “Guilty!” once news emerged. There have been huge cheers, with people shouting “Yes!”
      The crowd has chanted “George Floyd!” and “all three counts!” People have been screaming and crying.
      “Whose victory? Our victory” the crowd has chanted. Cars driving by have honked their horns in celebration.
      “Don’t let anyone tell you protest doesn’t work,” a man has told the crowd through a bullhorn.

      5.17pm EDT
      17:17

      The attorneys for George Floyd’s family have released statements following the conviction of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin.
      Attorney Ben Crump commented: “Painfully earned justice has arrived for George Floyd’s family and the community here in Minneapolis, but today’s verdict goes far beyond this city and has significant implications for the country and even the world. Justice for Black America is justice for all of America. This case is a turning point in American history for accountability of law enforcement and sends a clear message we hope is heard clearly in every city and every state.”
      “Today’s verdict is so critical in that it not only holds Derek Chauvin accountable for his horrific actions, but it reinforces significant police reforms underway in Minneapolis including use-of-force reporting, a requirement to keep body-worn cameras on, and a policy for officers to de-escalate non-threatening encounters by disengaging or walking away. Now we call on Minnesota state lawmakers to pass ” said attorney Antonio M. Romanucci.
      Attorney L. Chris Stewart said: “Today the world had its hope and faith restored in the American justice system. All that people crave is accountability when an officer kills a Black American. For far too long that had never happened. Now George Floyd’s soul can finally rest in peace. Justice has been served.”
      Lawyer Jeff Storms similarly stated: “The impact of George Floyd’s death on Minneapolis is impossible to explain, but today’s verdict is an important step toward healing. The community here has struggled to create accountability for officers who have used excessive force over many years and too many lives and caused so much pain and suffering. This jury has sent a clear and direct message that this can never happen again.”

      5.11pm EDT
      17:11

      Derek Chauvin was directed out of the courtroom in handcuffs moments after the guilty verdict was read in his murder case.

      5.10pm EDT
      17:10

      Derek Chauvin has been remanded in the custody of the Hennepin County Sheriff.

      5.08pm EDT
      17:08

      Chauvin guilty of manslaughter

      Derek Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree manslaughter.

      Updated
      at 5.10pm EDT

      5.07pm EDT
      17:07

      Chauvin guilty of third-degree murder

      Derek Chauvin was found guilty of third-degree murder.

      Updated
      at 5.10pm EDT

      5.07pm EDT
      17:07

      Chauvin guilty of second-degree murder

      Derek Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree unintentional murder.

      Updated
      at 5.10pm EDT

      5.05pm EDT
      17:05

      The judge in Derek Chauvin’s murder trial has taken the bench. We expect the verdict will be read momentarily. More

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      in Elections

      Maxine Waters criticised by Republicans for Minneapolis remarks – video

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      The Democratic representative Maxine Waters has come under criticism from the Republican house minority leader, after she expressed support for protesters against police brutality at a rally on Saturday in Brooklyn Center, the Minneapolis suburb where Daunte Wright, a 20-year-old Black man, was shot and killed by police last week.
      Waters said she would ‘continue to fight in every way that I can for justice’, prompting the Republican minority leader, Kevin McCarthy, to accuse Waters of ‘inciting violence in Minneapolis’

      Republicans demand action against Maxine Waters after Minneapolis remarks More

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      Republicans demand action against Maxine Waters after Minneapolis remarks

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      The Republican leader in the House of Representatives and an extremist congresswoman who champions “Anglo-Saxon political traditions” have demanded action against the Democratic representative Maxine Waters, after she expressed support for protesters against police brutality.On Saturday, Waters spoke in Brooklyn Center, the Minneapolis suburb where Daunte Wright, a 20-year-old Black man, was shot and killed by police last week.The California congresswoman spoke before final arguments on Monday in the murder trial of Derek Chauvin, the Minneapolis officer who knelt on the neck of George Floyd for more than nine minutes last May, resulting in the Black man’s death and global protests.“I’m going to fight with all of the people who stand for justice,” said Waters, who is Black. “We’ve got to get justice in this country and we cannot allow these killings to continue.”Tensions are high in Minneapolis.Waters said: “We’ve got to stay on the street and we’ve got to get more active, we’ve got to get more confrontational. We’ve got to make sure that they know that we mean business.”Of Chauvin, Waters said: “I hope we’re going to get a verdict that will say guilty, guilty, guilty. And if we don’t, we cannot go away.”On Sunday night the Republican minority leader, Kevin McCarthy, said: “Maxine Waters is inciting violence in Minneapolis – just as she has incited it in the past. If Speaker [Nancy] Pelosi doesn’t act against this dangerous rhetoric, I will bring action this week.”Waters, 82, a confrontational figure sometimes known as “Kerosene Maxine”, made headlines last week by telling the Ohio congressman Jim Jordan to “respect the chair and shut your mouth” during a hearing with Anthony Fauci, the chief White House medical adviser.She regularly clashed with Donald Trump, angering some Democratic leaders. In 2018, Waters said people should harass Trump aides in public. Pelosi called the comments “unacceptable”. The Senate leader, Chuck Schumer, went for “not American”.Observers said McCarthy’s most likely course of action is to seek formal censure – a move unlikely to succeed unless enough Democrats support it.From the far right of McCarthy’s party, the Georgia representative Marjorie Taylor-Greene compared Waters’ words with those of Trump, when he told supporters to march on Congress and overturn his election defeat, resulting in the deadly Capitol riot of 6 January.“Speaker Pelosi,” she tweeted. “You impeached President Trump after you said he incited violence by saying ‘march peacefully’ to the Capitol. So I can expect a yes vote from you on my resolution to expel Maxine Waters for inciting violence, riots, and abusing power threatening a jury, right?”Trump did tell supporters to “peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard”. He also said: “If you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country any more.”In February, Greene lost committee assignments over conspiracy-laden remarks. At the weekend, she dropped plans to start an “America First Caucus” based on “Anglo-Saxon political traditions”.Some Democrats want to expel Greene from Congress. That too is unlikely to succeed. More