Following former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin's conviction for the murder of George Floyd, a Minnesota judge sentenced Derek Chauvin to 22 1/2 years (270 months) in prison Friday — a punishment that exceeds the state's minimum guidelines but falls short of prosecutors' request of a 30-year sentence (article available here).
The state's maximum prison term for second-degree unintentional murder is 40 years, although the sentencing guidelines for second-degree unintentional murder largely taper off at 24 years. The charges Chauvin was convicted on carry a recommended sentence of between 10 years and 15 years, but his abuse of his position as an officer and the cruelty of his actions led to the upward revision, according to the judge’s sentencing order.
Chauvin "is the first white officer in Minnesota to face prison time for the killing of a Black man," according to Minnesota Public Radio.
Under Minnesota law, people sentenced to prison become eligible to be considered for parole after serving two-thirds of their sentence, as long as they've had no disciplinary problems while in custody.
Weeks after Chauvin was found guilty of murdering Floyd, the Justice Department announced federal criminal charges against him and three of his fellow former officers — J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao — over Floyd's death.