As was expected, former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has been found guilty of the in-custody death of George Floyd.

However, it was unexpected that the Jury would find Chauvin guilty on all three counts: unintentional second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. After only ten or so hours of deliberations, with no questions asked of the Judge, the finding indicates, at least to me, that the jury may have been coerced by the mass civil protests and violence and fearful of their own safety. As I feared, they may have whiffed, leaving it to the Appellate Court to resolve.

I lay much of the blame for Chauvin’s conviction primarily on Hennepin County Court Judge Peter Cahill, whose denial of a change of venue, postponement, or jury sequestration, along with consistently favorable rulings for the prosecution, led to this lopsided jury finding.

Especially when the City of Minneapolis announced on March 12th, about two weeks before jury selection began, they had authorized a $27 million settlement of the civil lawsuit filed by the Floyd family. This unprecedented payout signaled to everyone that the city believed that Chauvin’s guilt was incontrovertible. As for the size of the settlement, one can only note that it wasn’t the politician’s money being used.

While the case is appealed, Chauvin must be kept in solitary confinement to protect him from inmates who might want a chance of fame by killing him, thus adding harsher conditions than faced by other inmates.

The big lie…

I have lost respect for Senator Tim Scott (R-SC), who rushed to the cameras to issue a statement. “George Floyd died because Derek Chauvin kneeled on his neck and stopped him from breathing for more than nine minutes. There is no question in my mind that the jury reached the right verdict.” Was he not listening to the expert testimony that indicated that Chauvin did not kneel on his neck and stop him from breathing for more than nine minutes?

And from the big liar, President Joe Biden chimed in with his racialized identity politics, "It was a murder in the full light of day and it ripped the blinders off the whole world to see. Systemic racism is a stain on our nation’s soul.”

It gets worse...

It appears Chauvin's sentencing on the most serious of the three charges, second-degree murder will be in 8 weeks, and the State has filed a "Blakely motion" to allow for aggravated sentencing, above and beyond published guidelines. The motion will be argued over the coming weeks as sentencing approaches. 

Bottom line…

If you still believe in justice, ask why the police officer who shot and killed protester Ashli Babbitt has not been identified? Why is he not on trial for shooting an unarmed individual who presented no threat and was simply trespassing? What about reckless endangerment, shooting in the presence of armed officers on the other side of the door? Shouldn't we know his training, instructions, and who authorized the use of deadly force when the officer could have easily pushed her back on the other side of the window or Tased her? 

Gun-up America, policing everywhere has just been degraded. How many officers will resign, leaving communities under-protected? How may officers will refuse to intervene in an ongoing felony when they are faced with a life-altering decision that will affect their families as well as their personal freedom. If anything, Chauvin was guilty of being white while subduing a black criminal in racially charged times  Chauvin, becoming another victim of progressive identity politics. This was a political prosecution that did not result in justice!

Will the justice system ultimately work is yet to be determined. However, I am not optimistic that there will be a successful appeal and a re-trial. 

To say we are screwed is an understatement. God bless Derek Chauvin and keep him strong and safe until this Marxist madness is over and law and order can be restored to the land.

-- steve