Derek Chauvin could face decadeslong sentence in George Floyd murder

Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin learns his sentence Friday for murder in George Floyd's death, closing a chapter in a case that sparked global outrage and a reckoning on racial disparities in America.

The concrete barricades, razor wire and National Guard patrols that shrouded the county courthouse for Chauvin's three-week trial are gone, and so is most of the tension in the city as it awaited a verdict in April. Still, there's a recognition that Chauvin's sentencing will be another major step forward for a city that has been on edge since Floyd's death on May 25, 2020. "Between the incident, the video, the riots, the trial — this is the pinnacle of it," Mike Brandt, a local defense attorney who has closely followed Chauvin's case, said. "The verdict was huge too, but this is where the justice comes down."