A former police officer convicted of George Floyd’s death was sentenced to 20 years in prison in a similar case.

Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer charged in 2021 with George Floyd’s murder, was sentenced Thursday to 20 years and 5 months in prison on a separate federal charge of violating Floyd’s civil rights. At the time of the deadly arrest in May 2020, local news channel KSTP-TV reported.

Chauvin had already pleaded guilty to federal charges in December He is serving a 22 1/2-year sentence in a Minnesota prison for Floyd’s murder. After a trial in state court last year. The federal sentence will run concurrently.

U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson announced the sentence in St. Paul, Minnesota. Chau’s decision to plead guilty prevented him from a second criminal trial.

Chavin, 46, admitted violating Floyd’s right not to face “unreasonable restraint” by kneeling around the neck of the handcuffed black man for more than nine minutes, which was captured on cellphone video.

Death occurred Protests in many cities in the US and around the world Against police brutality and racism.

At his state trial last year, Chauvin was convicted of second-degree intentional homicide, third-degree manslaughter and second-degree manslaughter.. People sentenced to prison for serious crimes in Minnesota are usually released on parole after serving two-thirds of their sentence.

Chauvin pleaded guilty to civil rights charges as part of a plea deal with prosecutors that faced 20 to 25 years in federal prison. In that deal, he admitted for the first time that he was responsible for Floyd’s death. Federal prosecutors asked Magnuson to sentence Chauvin to 25 years in prison.

A federal crime that violates a person’s civil rights carries a range of penalties, from prison to life imprisonment to death, depending on the circumstances of the crime and the resulting injuries, the Justice Department said.

Chauvin assisted three fellow officers in May 2020 after Floyd was suspected of using a counterfeit $20 bill by the man. When buying cigarettes.

The trio, Du Tao, J. Alexander Kyung and Thomas Lane were convicted in federal court of violating Floyd’s rights in February. Their sentencing date is yet to be announced.

A medical examiner determined that police restraints prevented Floyd from breathing.

(With information from Reuters and EFE)

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