Turley: George Floyd case observers should find 22 years for Chauvin 'a fair sentence'

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Judge sentences Derek Chauvin to 22 1/2 years in prison for murder of George Floyd

Convicted murderer and former police officer Derek Chauvin is sentenced to 22 1/2 years in prison for the killing of George Floyd.

George Washington University Law Professor Jonathan Turley said Friday on "The Story" that the 22.5-year sentence handed down by Hennepin County, Minn., Judge Peter Cahill on former Police Officer Derek Chauvin in the second-degree murder of George Floyd is a "fair" outcome.

TURLEY:  In an ordinary case, the sentence would come down about 150 months or 12 & 1/2 years. [Cahill] said he was tacking on about 10 years due to some of the aggravating factors.

The ultimate weight of the sentence is a little bit lower than people were expecting. There were many asking for 30-year sentence. Many others expected it to be around 25, this is well within the range that I think most courts would have ended up in terms of the enhancements due to the aggravating factors. 

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What the court is saying is you need to go well above the sort of baseline for this type of offense. Ten years is a hefty amount of time. I think a lot of people would find this to be a fair sentence.

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