Ex-police officer convicted of murdering George Floyd

MINNEAPOLIS • Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has been found guilty of killing an unarmed black man, Mr George Floyd, when he knelt on the man's neck for nine minutes and 29 seconds. It was a videotaped death that ignited a summer of rage and the greatest racial reckoning in the United States since the 1960s.

A jury on Tuesday convicted Chauvin of second-degree murder and lesser charges for cutting off Mr Floyd's air supply on May 25 last year as he lay handcuffed and begging for mercy.

The jurors remained still and quiet as the verdict was read.

Chauvin, wearing a grey suit with a blue tie as well as a light-blue face mask, nodded and stood quickly when the judge ruled that his bail had been revoked. He was taken out of the courtroom in handcuffs and placed in the custody of the Hennepin County sheriff.

He will likely seek to overturn the convictions by arguing that the jury was prejudiced by media coverage and a settlement in the civil case brought by Mr Floyd's family, though his odds of success are slim, legal experts said.

Chauvin's attorneys will have to notify the trial court within 60 days if they plan to appeal. His lawyers then have months to review transcripts and court filings dating from the start of the case to build their arguments.

The conviction, which stood out against decades of impunity for most police excessive-force cases, could mean decades in prison for the 45-year-old.

Chauvin will face sentencing in eight weeks. The verdict, reached after less than 11 hours of deliberation, came 11 months after graphic footage of Chauvin and Mr Floyd went viral, shocking millions and prompting nationwide protests that spread across the globe.

Chauvin's conviction sets the stage for the coming trial of the other officers on the scene of Mr Floyd's death, Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao, who are charged with aiding and abetting the killing.

As the verdict was read, a crowd near the crime scene reacted with cheers and hugs.

In an address from the White House on Tuesday night, President Joe Biden voiced optimism that the verdict could mark a "moment of significant change" for a nation he said had not done enough to confront racial injustice.

"No one should be above the law and today's verdict sends that message, but it's not enough," he said. "This takes acknowledging and confronting head-on systemic racism and the racial disparities that exist in policing."

Earlier, he told Mr Floyd's family in a phone call that "nothing is going to make it all better. But at least, God, now there's some justice".

Mr Floyd's death galvanised the Black Lives Matter movement, already active after years of killings by police and vigilantes, while attracting unprecedented support from white people.

Mr Floyd's death sparked an urgent debate about the broader issue of inequality and institutionalised racism in all its forms, including in corporate America.

Anger had been building since the 2012 death of Florida teenager Trayvon Martin at the hands of a neighbourhood watch member, followed two years later by the police killing of Mr Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri.

Months before Mr Floyd's death, white men in Georgia shot Mr Ahmaud Arbery as he was jogging, and Kentucky police killed Ms Breonna Taylor in her home after waking her and her boyfriend in a drug raid gone awry.

While those deaths and many others led to calls for justice, it was Mr Floyd's killing as bystanders begged police for mercy that set off national outrage.

"Painfully earned justice has arrived for George Floyd's family," Mr Ben Crump, a lawyer who is head of the Floyd family's legal team, said in a statement.

Mr Crump said the verdict's impact extends beyond Minneapolis and will have "significant implications for the country and even the world".

Meanwhile, US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi drew criticism for thanking Mr Floyd for "sacrificing your life for justice". The comment drew widespread criticism online.

"Speaker Pelosi's comment about George Floyd was totally inappropriate. At a minimum, she should apologise," said Mr Josh McLaurin, a Democratic member of the Georgia state legislature, on Twitter. "But more than that, I think the gaffe clarifies how much this country would benefit from a Black Speaker of the House."

BLOOMBERG, REUTERS