Derek Chauvin is an ex-Minneapolis cop who is charged with second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the death of George Floyd, an African-American man who died in police custody in south Minneapolis during an encounter on May 25, 2020. The video of Floyd’s encounter went viral on social media in which Floyd was seen suffocating under the knee of Derek Chauvin who reportedly pinned down George Floyd’s neck with his knee for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. Following George Floyd’s death, several demonstrations and protests developed in over 100 cities throughout the United States and worldwide.

Protestors Holding Placards For The Justice of George Floyd's Death

Protestors Holding Placards For The Justice of George Floyd’s Death


Wiki/Biography

Derek Michael Chauvin was born in 1976 (age 44 years; as of 2020) in Oakdale, Minnesota, U.S. He grew up in the St. Paul area and attended Park High School in Cottage Grove, Minnesota. Although Chauvin didn’t graduate, he obtained a High School Equivalency Certificate. Thereafter, Chauvin attended several community colleges and Metropolitan State University in Minnesota. In 2006, Chauvin graduated from Minnesota’s Metropolitan State University with a bachelor’s degree in law enforcement. [1] He also attended a technical college where he studied food preparation and took classes like ‘pantry food preparation,’ ‘job seeking skills,’ and ‘stocks, sauces and soups.’ Later, he took the job of a cook at McDonald’s. He also worked at Tinucci’s Restaurant where he made ribs and chicken. [2] Besides doing the job of a cook, Chauvin also worked as a security guard at El Nuevo Rodeo, the Latin nightclub where George Floyd was also worked as a security guard.

Family & Ethnicity

Derek Chauvin belongs to a white American family. His wife, Kellie, is a Laotian immigrant who has two children from a previous marriage. [3] They got married on June 12, 2010, in Washington County. [4]

Derek Chauvin’s wife, Kellie Chauvin

Derek Chauvin’s wife, Kellie Chauvin

Kellie is also the first Hmong winner of the Mrs. Minnesota pageant. [5]

Kellie Chauvin as Miss Minnesota

Kellie Chauvin as Miss Minnesota

Career

At the age of 25, Derek Chauvin joined the Minneapolis Police Department in 2001. Earlier, he served the US Army as a military police officer from 1996 to 2000 and was stationed in Rochester, Minnesota, and Hohenfels in Germany. [6] Chauvin served the Minneapolis Police Department for 19 years until he was fired after George Floyd‘s death.

George Floyd’s Killing

On the evening of May 25, 2020, at around 8:08–8:28 pm, Minneapolis police arrested George Floyd because they had mistaken him as someone who attempted to pass off a counterfeit $20 bill at a store in Minneapolis to buy cigarettes. A video of his arrest shows Floyd on the ground with his hands cuffed behind his back. Officer Derek Chauvin is seen with his knee on Floyd’s neck while Floyd complaining he cannot breathe. Reportedly, Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds.

 

Reportedly, on the evening of May 25, after responding to a call from a grocery store that claimed Floyd had used a forged check, officers Chauvin and Thao approached George Floyd and handcuffed him, and when Floyd resisted arrest, they dragged him from his car and pinned him to the ground. [7]

Arrest & Trial

On May 26, 2020, the officers involved in George Floyd’s alleged arrest and encounter were placed on leave. Later in the day, all the four officers (Derek Michael Chauvin, Tou Thao, Thomas K. Lane, and J. Alexander Kueng) were fired. On the same day, the FBI announced to review the incident.

On May 28, 2020, the United States Department of Justice and the FBI issued a joint statement to investigate into Floyd’s death by giving it “a top priority.” In the statement, they said,

A comprehensive investigation will compile all available information and thoroughly evaluate evidence and information obtained from witnesses … If it is determined that there has been a violation of federal law, criminal charges will be sought.”

On May 29, 2020, Derek Chauvin became the first white officer in Minnesota to get arrested on charges of a black civilian’s death. Chauvin was charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. Later, the charge against Chauvin was elevated to second-degree from third-degree. [8] On June 29, all four men (Derek Michael Chauvin, Tou Thao, Thomas K. Lane, and J. Alexander Kueng) appeared in court.

Officers Charged in George Floyd's Killing

Officers Charged in George Floyd’s Killing

Judge Peter A. Cahill of Hennepin County District Court set the next hearing for September 11, 2020, and a trial date of March 8, 2021. [9] So far, three of the four ex-Minneapolis police officers facing charges in George’s Floyd’s fatal encounter, have been released from jail. Only Derek Chauvin remains in custody at the jail, with his bail set at $1.25 million. [10]

Divorce Petition by His Wife Kellie

Shortly after Derek’s arrest, Kellie intended to divorce him, and they separated three days after Mr. Floyd’s killing. [11] Reportedly, she also requested to change her last name. [12] Kellie and Derek Chauvin had been married for almost 10 years. [13] While describing Derek Chauvin, Kellie told a local paper,

Under all that uniform, he’s just a softie. He still opens the door for me, still puts my coat on for me. After my divorce, I had a list of must-haves if I were ever to be in a relationship, and he fit all of them.” 14]

On May 31, 2020, the 45-year-old Kellie Chauvin filed a divorce petition in Washington County District Court. Reportedly, she also asked for the couple’s two homes in their divorce. While talking about it, Jack De Walt, an 18-year family law attorney, said,

Homes are only one part of a marital estate, and without understanding what the other person is being awarded outside of the homes, [the divorce petition] is not actually telling you whether this person is asking for more than 50 percent.” [15]

Kellie Chauvin, a former Realtor, was unemployed when she filed the divorce petition. While filing the petition, she requested a “fair and equitable division” of personal property, vehicles; and all bank, retirement, and investment accounts. Reportedly, Kellie neither sought nor offered alimony payments. She also asked for sole ownership of their primary home in Oakdale and a townhouse in Windermere, Fla. The Oakdale house was bought by them in 2017 for $260,000, which is now valued at $273,800. In 2011, they bought the Florida townhouse for $210,900, which is now valued at $226,282. [16]

Other Controversies

  • Chauvin’s record as a police officer has been littered with allegations of misconduct and excessive force, and he attracted almost eighteen complaints against him over his 19-year career. [17]
  • In August 2007, a Minneapolis woman, Melissa Borton filed a complaint against Chauvin and another officer who pulled her over when she was returning home from a grocery store with her infant. In her complaint, she said that they approached her car, reached inside “without a word,” unlocked her door, pulled her out, and put her in the back of a police cruiser. The officers had allegedly stopped her for driving 10 miles over the speed limit. [18]
  • During Chauvin’s incarceration, eight correctional officers of color working at the Minnesota County Jail claimed Chauvin was given special treatment by the jail authorities. They also said that they had also spotted a white lieutenant sitting on his bed and allowing Chauvin to use her cell phone. [19]

Facts/Trivia

  • Chauvin is the first white officer in Minnesota to get arrested on charges of a black civilian’s death. [20]
  • Chauvin and Floyd worked together at a Latin nightclub, El Nuevo Rodeo; however, it’s not known that whether they knew each other at that time. Floyd’s family attorney, Benjamin Crump suggested that Chauvin and Floyd crossed paths at the nightclub, but the owner of the nightclub, Maya Santamaria said in an interview that she wasn’t sure they ever met. [21]
  • While recalling Chauvin’s demeanor as a security guard at her nightclub, Maya Santamaria said that his attitude would change during special events for Black communities and that she had also reprimanded him at one such occasion when he used pepper spray on patrons.  [22]
  • In 2006, Chauvin’s name was recommended for a Medal of Valor for his involvement in the fatal police shooting of Wayne Reyes. [23]
  • In 2008, he was awarded a Medal of Commendation for disarming a man during one of his nightclub security shifts.  [24]
  • In 2008 and 2013, he was also commended by two women for handling domestic violence calls. [25]
  • George Floyd‘s death led him to be referred to as the most hated man in the world. [26]