Photo: Twitter
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin appears to be on the verge of pleading guilty to violating George Floyd ’s civil rights, according to a notice sent out Monday by the court’s electronic filing system.
The federal docket entry shows a hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday for Chauvin to change his current not guilty plea in the case. These types of notices typically indicate a defendant is planning to plead guilty, though nothing will be official until it happens in court. The court system also sent out instructions for media to attend the hearing.
Chauvin has already been convicted of state murder and manslaughter charges for pinning his knee against Floyd’s neck as the Black man said he couldn’t breathe during a May 25, 2020 arrest. He was sentenced to 22 1/2 years in that case.
He and three other former officers — Thomas Lane, J. Kueng and Tou Thao — were set to go to trial in late January on federal charges alleging they willfully violated Floyd’s rights.
Read more.
