Tag: John Pope

Federal Court Sentences Derek Chauvin to 245 months (20.4 years) for Depriving George Floyd (and John Pope) of Their Federal Civil Rights

On July 7, 2022, in the U.S. District Court in St. Paul, Minnesota, Judge Paul A. Magnuson sentenced Derek Chauvin to 245 months (20.4 years) in federal prison for (a) his depriving George Floyd of his federal civil rights by pinning his knee against Floyd’s neck and by failing to provide medical care for Floyd on May 25, 2020, ultimately causing his death and (b) Chauvin’s holding down with his knee John Pope, then  a 14-year old boy in 2007, and failing to provide medical care to the boy and thereby causing non-fatal injuries. [1]

At the hearing, Judge Magnuson said, “I really don’t know why you did what you did. But to put your knee on another person’s neck until they expire is simply wrong and for that conduct you must be substantially punished. Your conduct is wrong and it is offensive. To put a knee on another person’s neck is unconscionable.” In addition, the Judge said that Chauvin’s taking control of the Floyd arrest had “absolutely destroyed the lives of three other young officers [Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao].”

Other Comments at the Hearing

Before the Judge announced the sentence, the federal prosecutor, LeeAnn Bell, said the sentence “needs to reflect the intentionality. He wasn’t a rookie. He’d been a police officer for years. He knew what his training was. He knew what he was doing was wrong and he did it anyway.” The prosecution’s request for the longer sentence of 25 years reflected that fact that Chauvin’s crime against John Pope was not part of the state case over the killing of George Floyd, for which Chauvin previously was convicted and sentenced by the state court.

George Floyd’s brother, Philonise, said, “I haven’t had a real night’s sleep since this happened. Hearing my brother beg and plead for his life again and again, screaming for our mom.” His family had received a “life sentence. We will never get George back.”

Courtney Ross, Floyd’s girlfriend, in a written statement read by the Judge said, “I don’t hate you, Mr. Chauvin. I’m working on forgiving you because that’s what George Floyd would want me to do.”

John Pope told the court that his encounter with Chauvin had changed him from a “happy’ person to someone who saw his dreams “slip from my hands.” Pope hopes Chauvin takes this time to think about what he could have done differently and what he did to others,” noting that Chauvin’s actions against him had gone unchallenged until Floyd’s killing.

Chauvin’s attorney, Eric Nelson, told the court that Chauvin had received over 1,000 letters of support, evidencing his good “character and qualities as a human being,” that Chauvin had already been punished by [the State of Minnesota] for the offenses [against Mr. Floyd] and that Chauvin had accepted his wrongdoing and had expressed remorse for the harm that has flowed from his actions.

Chauvin himself said that he wanted “to wish [Floyd’s children] all the best in their life and have excellent guidance in becoming great adults.” To John Pope, Chauvin said, “I hope you have a good relationship with your mother and also your sister, and I hope you have the ability to get the best education possible to lead a productive and rewarding life.” But Chauvin did not apologize.

Chauvin’s mother, Carolyn Pawlenty, thanked his supporters and denounced the “misinformation” in media that her son is a racist and has no heart. Everyone in Minnesota needs to heal and realize that all lives matter, no matter the color of your skin. Every life matters.” She then asked for federal prison placement in Minnesota or Iowa to be close to his family.

Background for the Hearing[2]

On December 15, 2021, Chauvin pleaded guilty to two counts of depriving Mr. Floyd of his federally-protected civil rights and ultimately causing his death and to the charges for his 2017 misconduct with Mr. Pope, and under the negotiated Plea Agreement the prosecution and Chauvin agreed that the court could impose imprisonment of 20 to 25 years for these crimes.

This plea agreement was approved by Judge Magnuson on May 4, 2022, when he said the federal sentence would be in accordance with that plea agreement.

Conclusion[3]

Since his conviction on the state criminal charges, Chauvin has been in “administrative segregation” in Minnesota’s maximum security prison in Oak Park Heights, MN and largely confined to a 10-by-10-foot room with about one hour a day outside for exercise.

Now he will be transferred to a federal prison. The federal Bureau of Prisons will decide where Chauvin will be assigned, after evaluating his medical or programming needs, separation and security measures to ensure his protection and proximity to his release residence. Experts speculate that he probably will start in a medium-security facility. Former U.S. Attorney Tom Heffelfinger observed, “It’s dangerous to be an officer in any prison. It’s even more dangerous in state prison because of the nature of the inmate population. There are gangs, for example. And police officers just don’t do well there. Those risks are reduced in a federal prison.”

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1  U.S. Sentencing Memorandum, U.S. v. Chauvin, Criminal No. 21-108(01), U.S. Dist. Ct. MN (June 22, 2022); Defendant’s Position Regarding Sentencing, U.S. v. Chauvin, Criminal No. 21-108(01), U.S. Dist. Ct. MN (June 22, 2022); Montemayor, Derek Chauvin’s federal sentencing scheduled for Thursday, StarTribune (July 5, 2020); Karnowski (AP), Derek Chauvin to be sentenced Thursday in St. Paul on federal charges in George Floyd killing, Pioneer Press (July 5, 2022); Almasy, Derek Chauvin to be sentenced Thursday on  federal charges, cnn.com (July 7, 2022); Bailey, Derek Chauvin faces federal sentence for Floyd’s killing, Wash. Post (July 7, 2022); Collins & Sepic, George Floyd killing: Derek Chauvin sentencing underway in federal court, MPRNews (July 7, 2022); Karnowski (AP), Chauvin gets 21 years for violating Floyd’s civil rights, AP News.com (July 7, 2022); Bailey, Chauvin sentenced to 20 years for violating Floyd’s civil rights, Wash. Post (July 7, 2022); Sepic & Collins, Ex-cop Chauvin gets 20-plus years for violating George Floyd’s civil rights, MPRNews (July 7, 2022); Senter & Dewan, Killer of George Floyd Sentenced to 21 Years for violating civil rights, N.Y. Times (July 7, 2022).

[2] Federal Criminal Trial for Killing George Floyd: Jury Deliberations and Verdict, dwkcommentaries.com (Feb. 25, 2022); Derek Chauvin Pleads Guilty to Federal Criminal Charges Over George Floyd Killing and Excess Force Against Teenager, dwkcommentaries.com (Dec. 16, 2021); Comment: Federal Court Accepts Chauvin’s Plea Agreement, dwkcommentaries.com (July 7, 2022); Order, U.S. v. Chauvin, Criminal No. 21-108(01), U.S. Dist. Ct. MN (May 4, 2022).

[3]   EXPLAINER: Chauvin heads to federal prison for Floyd’s death. StarTribune (July 7, 2022).

Derek Chauvin and City of Minneapolis Sued for Alleged Use of Excessive Force in 2017

On May 31, 2022, Derek Chauvin, the City of Minneapolis and certain other Minneapolis police officers were sued in two federal court cases for compensatory and punitive damages for Chauvin’s alleged use of excessive force in 2017.

John Pope Case[1]

In September 2017, John Pope, then 14 years old, alleges that he was alone in his bedroom on the floor using his cellphone when two Minneapolis police officers came into his room and said he was under arrest. When Pope asked why, one of the officers hit him on the head with a flashlight and choked him until he passed out. When he woke up, one of the officers had his knee on the back of Pope’s neck, and Pope asked the officer to move his knee to Pope’s lower back to help him breathe. The officer responded, “Are you going to flounce around,” before he moved his knee. At the time, Pope did not know the name of the officer, but after seeing photos of Chauvin after the killing of George Floyd, Pope believed that Chauvin was the officer in the encounter.

Thereafter Pope, now a soft-spoken bank supervisor and college student studying criminal justice, retained attorneys who investigated the case and with the aid of body-worn camera footage determined the following:

  • “That night Chauvin was acting as a field-training officer for officer Alexander Walls when the two responded to a domestic assault call at 8:45 p.m. to Pope’s home on the 5700 block of Chicago Avenue S. Pope was there with his sister and his mother, Deanna Jenkins.”
  • “Upon arrival, the officers called in a ‘Code 4,’ meaning the situation was under control and no assistance was needed. But Jenkins, who was obviously drunk, the lawsuit said, told Chauvin and Walls she wanted Pope and his sister arrested for using electricity to charge their phones.”
  • Jenkins “claimed Pope had grabbed her from behind, and with Chauvin watching, she filled out domestic assault paperwork.” The officers then went to talk to Pope in his bedroom, according to the lawsuit.
  • “The lawsuit said Chauvin held him down for 15 minutes while Pope was ‘completely subdued and not resisting,’ but crying out that he couldn’t breathe. Citing body-camera footage, the lawsuit said Jenkins asked Chauvin eight times to get off of Pope.”
  • “At least eight officers, including Walls and five others named in the lawsuit, saw Chauvin kneeling on an unmoving Pope but did nothing to stop the restraint. Chauvin was still on Pope when paramedics showed up, the lawsuit said.”
  • “Pope was taken to the hospital for stitches and then the Juvenile Justice Center where he was charged with fifth-degree domestic assault, a misdemeanor, and obstructing the legal process, a gross misdemeanor, but the charges were quickly dropped.”

In addition, the lawsuit alleges that the “kneeing maneuver” Chauvin used on Pope, Floyd and “likely many others” was Chauvin’s “calling card” despite officers knowing it posed serious risk of injury and death from positional asphyxia and that the MPD culture “encourages and enables racist, predatory police officers and unconstitutional force practices.”

Moreover, according to the lawsuit, “Chauvin’s treatment of Pope and [Zoya] Code [the plaintiff in the other new case] was available to MPD supervisors because the city maintains electronic storage of all body-worn camera footage through evidence.com. ‘But the city buried its head in the sand regarding such evidence or even worse, reviewed it and did nothing, in either case continuing to condone such actions by officers.’”

As a result, says the lawsuit, “Chauvin and six other officers violated . . . [Pope’s] constitutional right to be free from excessive force” and “that rather than discipline Chauvin for his treatment of Pope, the officer was “‘left free to prowl for more Black persons to subjugate and torture.’”

More specifically, the Complaint asserts the following claims:

  • Count I: Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment Violations against Chauvin individually for compensatory and punitive damages plus costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees.
  • Count II: Race Discrimination—Fourteenth Amendment Violation against Chauvin individually for compensatory and punitive damages plus costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees.
  • Count III: Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment Violations against six other officers individually for compensatory and punitive damages plus costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees.
  • Count IV: Civil Rights Violations (Monell v. Dept. of Social Services) against the City of Minneapolis for compensatory damages plus costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees.
  • Count V: Violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 against the City of Minneapolis for compensatory damages plus costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees.

Zoya Code Case[2]

Code, a 39-year-old mother of five alleges that in 2017 Chauvin held his knee on her back and traumatized her. She said, “I didn’t know his name. All I knew was he was a police officer with Minneapolis Police Department. I didn’t know what precinct he was at. All I knew was his face. [Chauvin] haunted me until I seen him on top of George [Floyd].” The legal bases for the five counts of this Complaint and the claimed relief are the same as the Complaint by Mr. Pope, except the latter’s Count III is only against one other officer.

Plaintiffs’ Attorneys

Mr. Pope and Ms. Code are represented by the prestigious Minneapolis law firm of Robins Kaplan LLP and three of its partners (Robert Bennett, Andrew Noel and Kathryn Bennett) along with Counsel Marc E. Betinsky and Associate Greta Wiessner.

The skills of these attorneys are demonstrated by the obviously well researched and written complaints. They are ready for battle if that is needed.

City of Minneapolis’ Reactions

In a statement, Minneapolis City Attorney Peter Ginder called the accounts of Pope and Code “disturbing. “We intend to move forward in negotiations with the Plaintiffs on these two matters and hope we can reach a reasonable settlement. If a settlement cannot be reached on one or both lawsuits, the disputes will have to be resolved through the normal course of litigation.”

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[1]  Complaint, Pope v. Chauvin, U.S. Dist. Ct., D. MN, No.0:22-cv-01434 (May 31, 2022); Olson & Robiou, Chauvin, Minneapolis police named in two federal excessive-force lawsuits dating to 2017, involving teenager, woman, StarTribune (May 31, 2022); Vancleave, [Videotape]: Minneapolis teen recalls violent arrest by Derek Chauvin years before George Floyd, StarTribune (May 31, 2022).

[2]   Complaint, Code v.  Chauvin, U.S. Dist. Ct., D. MN, No. 0:22-cv-01438 (May 31, 2022); Olson & Robiou, Chauvin, Minneapolis police named in two federal excessive-force lawsuits dating to 2017, involving teenager, woman, StarTribune (May 31, 2022).