Officer charged in Floyd’s death considered guilty plea before talks fell apart: report

Prosecutors in Hennepin County, Minn., said they were negotiating a plea deal with Derek Chauvin, a former officer charged in the death of George Floyd, before the deal fell through, ABC News reported.

The arrangement under discussion would have reportedly allowed Chauvin to plead guilty to local murder charges and federal civil rights violation charges, the prosecutor’s office told ABC. The office offered no further information on the charges.

A local Fox affiliate separately reported Tuesday that federal and state prosecutors were negotiating a possible plea deal with Chauvin the day before he was arrested late last month. Floyd’s death sparked protests across the country.

The Hennepin County prosecutor’s office told ABC News that talks about potential plea deals are common during high-profile cases and frequently fall through. The office did not offer details to the outlet on why no deal could be reached.

The Hill has reached out to the prosecutor’s office for comment.

Chauvin was charged after kneeling on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes despite Floyd’s pleas that he was unable to breathe. Chauvin continued to kneel on Floyd’s neck for about three minutes after Floyd became unresponsive.

The county attorney’s office charged Floyd with third-degree murder and manslaughter on May 29, the Friday after Floyd’s death, as protests roiling Minneapolis were beginning to spread to nearly every other major city in the U.S.

Since then, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison (D) has taken control of the investigation and has upgraded the charge to second-degree murder. Ellison also indicted three other officers who were on the scene on charges of aiding and abetting second-degree murder and aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter.

The protests, meanwhile, have continued, taking place in every U.S. state and overseas.

Chauvin, who has not entered a plea in the case, made his first court appearance Monday, during which a judge ordered him held on $1.25 million bail, with bail conditions including no contact with Floyd’s family, no leaving the state without permission, and no working in either law enforcement or security.

Chauvin’s next court date is set for June 29, according to ABC.