Derek Chauvin

Chauvin joined the Minneapolis Police Department in 2001 and served for nearly 19 years. During that time, 18 complaints were filed against him with Internal Affairs, though only two resulted in discipline — both letters of reprimand for using demeaning language ^[4]. He was involved in four on-duty shootings or other fatal encounters and was recorded kneeling on suspects' necks or using chokeholds at least six times since 2015 ^[5]. Despite this record, he continued to serve as a field training officer, mentoring rookies.

Chauvin also worked extended off-duty hours as a security guard at the El Nuevo Rodeo nightclub in Minneapolis for nearly 17 years — the same club where George Floyd occasionally worked security on Tuesday shifts ^[3]. On May 25, 2020, Chauvin knelt on Floyd's neck for over nine minutes during an arrest, killing him. He was fired the next day.

On April 20, 2021, a jury convicted Chauvin of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter — the first time a Minnesota police officer had ever been convicted of second-degree murder ^[6]. He was sentenced to 22 and a half years in state prison. In December 2021, he pleaded guilty to federal civil rights charges for violating Floyd's constitutional rights and was sentenced to an additional 21 years, to be served concurrently ^[7]. On November 24, 2023, Chauvin was stabbed 22 times by a fellow inmate at a federal prison in Tucson, Arizona; he survived and was later transferred to a federal facility in Oklahoma ^[8].