Bill and Hillary Clinton Call the Conviction of Chauvin the ‘Right Decision’
Former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are weighing in following the conviction of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. Chauvin was convicted on Tuesday on all three…
Former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are weighing in following the conviction of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin.
Chauvin was convicted on Tuesday on all three charges against him in the death of George Floyd in May 2020.
Calling the conviction the “right decision,” Bill Clinton wrote in a statement, “His tragic death and the evidence at the trial, made painfully clear that we must do much better in recruiting, training, and holding Law Enforcement accountable to the communities they serve. The failure to do so continues to plague America, as we have seen in recent days.”
The former president added that “the color of a person’s skin still determines far too often how they will be treated in nearly every aspect of American life.”
“While the verdict won’t bring George Floyd back, it can help us prevent more senseless deaths and hasten the day when we are all treated equally in matters of life, liberty, dignity, respect, and opportunity. If we all do our part, that will be George Floyd’s lasting legacy.”
Additionally, Hillary Clinton wrote in a tweet on Tuesday evening, “George Floyd’s family and community deserved for his killer to be held accountable. Today, they got that accountability. Always and forever, Black lives matter.”
On the second day of deliberations, the jurors reached a verdict in the trial.
Chauvin had pleaded not guilty to all three charges: second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree “depraved mind” murder, and second-degree manslaughter.
President Joe Bidensaid the guilty verdict was a “a step forward.”
Former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama also responded following Chauvin’s conviction, as IJR reported on.
“Today, a jury in Minneapolis did the right thing. For almost a year, George Floyd’s death under the knee of a police officer has reverberated around the world — inspiring murals and marches, sparking conversations in living rooms and new legislation. But a more basic question has always remained: would justice be done?” they wrote in a statement.
The Obamas added, “In this case, at least, we have our answer. But if we’re being honest with ourselves, we know that true justice is about much more than a single verdict in a single trial.”