The May 25 death of George Floyd—which had been accused of looking to buy cigarettes using a falsified bill — has ignited riots around the U.S. against systemic racism and police violence.
“Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison is increasing charges against Derek Chauvin to 2nd degree in George Floyd’s murder and also charging other 3 officers,” US Senator Amy Klobuchar tweeted.
“This is another important step for justice.”
Last week, Chauvin was charged with a third-degree murder, which is roughly equal to manslaughter. A second-degree murder charge does not suggest premeditation but carries more severe penalties.
Legal documents reveal that the second-degree murder charge had been added to the allegations before. The three other officers were charged with aiding and facilitating second-degree murder, documents show.
In a statement, Floyd’s family described news of the new charges as a “bittersweet moment”.
“This is a significant step forward on the road to justice, and we are gratified that this important action came before George Floyd’s body was laid to rest,” the statement said.
The statement, issued by family attorney Ben Crump, also said that Ellison would consider elevating the charge to premeditated murder “if the evidence supports it”. The family urged protesters to “raise their voices for change in peaceful ways.”
Tens of thousands of demonstrators in several US cities defied night-time curfews on Tuesday.
But the demonstrations remained mostly peaceful, and while their tense standoffs with law enforcement standoffs, the protests did not involve previous days’ looting or clashes with police.
The post Four cops charged in George Floyd death, one with 2nd-degree murder appeared first on Rava.
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