BY BILL JUNEAU
After an unnecessarily long 66 days, during which time BLM protesters and angry progressives continued their drumbeat about white supremacy and police brutality, Minneapolis Judge Peter Cahill sentenced Policeman Derek Chauvin, 45, to 270 months (22 and 1/2 years) in a prison for the unintentional second degree murder of George Floyd.
Cahill presided over the three-week jury trial which ended on April 20, and asserted that he would not let emotions or public sentiment influence his penalty for the officer who had been found guilty of two counts of murder and one of manslaughter of Floyd. The sentence. he said, will be scrupulously consistent with the law.
Cahill said that while the recommended sentence for the second degree murder, the all encompassing charge, was 12 and 1/2 years behind bars, he was increasing the time in prison because of the unnecessary cruelty displayed by Officer Chauvin in making the arrest in the presence of children, and for the abuse of his authority as a policeman.
Although Judge Cahill had emphasized that he was guided by law and not public sentiment and Floyd family demands for a 40-year sentence, he came up with reasons to ignore recommended guidelines, and he tacked on another 10 years. Floyd's death was unintentional, and accidental, and the judge knew it, but Judge Cahill also knew that he needed to hammer the police officer so as to maintain his standing with the BLM and the far-left community.
His sentencing drew applause from the Floyd family, though members said it was still too lenient. Democratic politicians, police haters and liberal media nincompoops said that justice was being done, but that a harsher sentence was warranted.
Prior to the sentencing, Judge Cahill heard testimony from individuals wishing to offer their thoughts in aggravation and mitigation. Among those testifying were a George Floyd brother and a 7-year-old daughter. The daughter, Gianna, responded to leading questions and told of missing her dad whom she did things with. The little girl roiled up emotions inside and outside the courthouse. One Floyd brother said that anything less that 40 years would be a "slap on the wrist."
Carolyn Pawlenty, Derek Chauvin’s mother, told the judge that "my son's identify has been reduced to that of a racist, but he is a good man, thoughtful, quiet and honorable."
The public, she said, will never know the loving and caring man he is. She added, "Derek, I always believed in your innocence, and I will never waver from that." .
Defendant Chauvin, a veteran Minneapolis officer with 18 years experience, spoke briefly and haltingly and gave "condolences to the Floyd family." He added that he will not "be able to give a full and formal statement at this time, as there is going to be some additional information in the future which will be of interest, and I hope it will give them peace of mind." The comment was puzzling, but seemed to say that federal charges were still pending against him and that there will be an appeal, and that his words might subsequently be used against him.
Despite what the media is saying about how Chauvin will be in his 60s when and if he ever is paroled, the case is not over and a reversal and order for a new trial may ultimately be forthcoming. Former Harvard criminal law professor, Alan Dershowitz has said that in Minneapolis, there was no way that Chauvin could ever receive a fair trial and that the court venue, peppered with overwhelming emotion and vitriol for the policeman, and for all policemen, would not stand the test of time.
George Floyd is being hailed as a hero and a symbol of "justice." His death followed his legal arrest and detainment for using a counterfeit $20 bill to purchase cigarettes. It was an unforeseeable and unintended tragedy. It triggered a disproportionate outcry against racial injustice which resulted in violence, anarchy and disrespect for policemen everywhere amid allegations that America is controlled by white supremacists who mistreat African Americans simply because of the color of their skin.
White or Black, George Floyd, 46, was a criminal and a drug addict with a long police record for various types of thievery, and for armed robbery and home invasion. For the home invasion he was said to have been the leader of a gang which broke into a private home and tormented and robbed its residents, including a pregnant woman. For that crime, he served five years in a prison.
In the Chauvin appeal, which eventually may reach the U.S. Supreme Court because of its many constitutional issues alleged, reviewing judges will be asked to decide if the jury pool was tainted because one of the 12, a 31-year-old high school basketball coach, had concealed facts when questioned by lawyers and the court in determining his fitness to serve. In the voir dire examination, Brandon Mitchell, failed to reveal that he had attended a rally last August in D.C. at which Floyd family members spoke, and that he wore a BLM hat and a Tee shirt emblazoned with the phrase, "Get Your Knee off Our Necks."
Were jurors afraid to find anything but a guilty verdict on all counts, in view of the potential rioting and anarchy and danger to them if they failed to do so? One congresswoman, Maxine Waters, had screamed into public megaphones that the jury better find Chauvin guilty of murder or "there would be repercussions...and we won't forget."
As jurors were being interviewed prior to being seated, word was dispatched publicly by Minneapolis officials that the Floyd family was being given $27 million dollars as compensation for the murder of George Floyd. Did that influence their findings that Chauvin was without doubt---- guilty?
How did jurors and potential jurors react as they walked by George Floyd Square on their way to the courthouse, which was surrounded by razor wire and barricades? Everywhere they looked they saw signs of neighborhoods damaged by riots, with even the police station burned. Were they induced to find Chauvin guilty for fear of what might happen in the streets and possibly to them, personally, as decision makers?
Defense Attorney Eric Nelson has argued that the cause of Floyd's death has never been scientifically determined. Did he die from the knee to his neck, or did he succumb as a result of the huge amount of fentanyl and methamphetamine which he had ingested? Did his arteries, some 90 percent blocked, cause a stoppage of blood to his brain? Did carbon monoxide play a part? As a long time user of drugs, Floyd was a very sick man.
Did Chauvin receive a fair trial and a presumption of innocence as is mandated in the Constitution? Reviewing judges must decide, and public sentiment, vitriol for police and racial identity are not elements to be factored in.
Prior to the sentencing, Judge Cahill denied a defense motion for a new trial, and he declined to hold a hearing on the revelations involving juror Mitchell, and whether the jury had been infected. Had lawyers known of Mitchell's sympathetic activity, he would never have been accepted as a juror.
After the verdict, Chauvin was led from the courtroom in handcuffs and will be sent to a prison to begin serving his term and to await any developments arising as a result of pending federal charges against him and his appeal seeking a new trial or a reversal of the verdict.
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