Former Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin, who is currently doing federal and state time for the killing of George Floyd, was stabbed last week by a fellow inmate. After a chilling period of silence, officials have confirmed he will survive the attack.
A spokesperson for the Minnesota Attorney General’s office told KSTP over the weekend that Chauvin was in stable condition and expected to survive the attack in a Tucson, Ariz. prison, according to federal law enforcement officials. There are little to no details about what exactly happened; according to The Associated Press, Chauvin’s family and attorneys have also had no luck in trying to get information on the incident.
“As an outsider, I view this lack of communication with his attorneys and family members as completely outrageous. It appears to be indicative of a poorly run facility and indicates how Derek’s assault was allowed to happen,” said attorney Gregory M. Erickson via The AP.
Many anticipated that Chauvin would have opps both outside and inside the prison system given the national outrage over the video of the 2020 incident, in which he’s seen kneeling on Floyd’s neck on the street for nearly 10 minutes as Floyd cries for help.
However, the Tucson prison itself seems to have a track record of inmate-on-inmate violence.
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Staffing shortages and security lapses have plagued the Tucson prison where Chauvin was stabbed. It was the second high-profile stabbing of a federal prisoner since July, when convicted serial sexual abuser Dr Larry Nassar was stabbed by a fellow inmate at a penitentiary in Florida.
Meanwhile, in November of last year, an inmate held in another part of the Tucson prison drew a gun and attempted to shoot a visitor in the head. No one was hurt after the gun, which the inmate shouldn’t have been able to get, misfired.
The attack comes right after Chauvin appealed his conviction to the U.S. Supreme Court and was rejected.
Chauvin was convicted of second-degree murder and civil rights violations in the killing of Floyd. He’s serving more than two decades in prison on state murder charges and federal charges for violating Floyd’s constitutional rights.