Today, a jury in Minneapolis, Minnesota, convicted Derek Chauvin on second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter for killing George Floyd in May 2020. In response, NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) President and Director-Counsel Sherrilyn Ifill issued the following statement:
“The trial of Derek Chauvin has been a traumatic and painful reliving of the killing of George Floyd, which led to widespread protests against police violence in all 50 states and around the world last summer. The injustice of Mr. Floyd’s death cannot be understated. No decision can bring him back, but we hope today’s decision provides Mr. Floyd’s family — and the communities that have been fighting for police accountability – a measure of justice.
“While we are relieved by the jury’s decision to convict Derek Chauvin on all charges, accountability for Mr. Floyd’s death requires more than a singular conviction. Involved in Mr. Floyd’s death were three other officers, all of whom stood idly by as he was killed. Beyond the accountability of the individual officers involved, we must confront the widespread and systemic racism in our public safety apparatus, which consistently leads to law enforcement’s disproportionate harassment, intimidation, and often fatal violence against Black and Brown people as young as 13-year-old Adam Toledo and 12-year-old Tamir Rice. Indeed, Mr. Floyd’s death was rooted in a legacy of relentless police brutality against Black and Brown communities that continues unabated. Daunte Wright, for example, was killed during Derek Chauvin’s trial just miles from the courthouse.
“Just as it is vital for law enforcement officers to be held accountable for their actions, it is imperative that we fundamentally redesign our legal system to center police accountability and reinvent our public safety system to protect the civil and human rights of all people, especially Black and Brown persons who have been the victims of the worst state-sponsored violence in this country’s history of law enforcement. We call on the United States Senate to immediately pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act and on the Department of Justice to develop a protocol to ensure that federal funds are not provided to law enforcement agencies that violate the anti-discrimination provisions of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
“This trial has been incredibly painful for the family, for the witnesses and for the city of Minneapolis. In fact, around the country, many of us are anguished that our justice system has so often failed in these cases, and without question will again. It is critical that we acknowledge this moment, that we recognize our pain, and that we continue our demand for real, transformative change. As communities take to the streets nationwide, we stand with them and their calls for a public safety system that truly delivers justice not just today – but every day.”
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Founded in 1940, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) is the nation’s first civil and human rights law organization. LDF has been completely separate from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) since 1957—although LDF was originally founded by the NAACP and shares its commitment to equal rights. LDF’s Thurgood Marshall Institute is a multi-disciplinary and collaborative hub within LDF that launches targeted campaigns and undertakes innovative research to shape the civil rights narrative. In media attributions, please refer to us as the NAACP Legal Defense Fund or LDF.
