Race & Politics

Ex-cop convicted in George Floyd killing stabbed in prison, AP source says 

FILE In this image taken from video, former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin addresses the court at the Hennepin County Courthouse on June 25, 2021, in Minneapolis. The Minnesota Court of Appeals on Monday, April 17, 2023 upheld his second-degree murder conviction for the killing of George Floyd. (Court TV via AP, Pool, File)

The ex-police officer convicted for the murder of George Floyd was reportedly stabbed in an Arizona prison Friday.

Derek Chauvin was stabbed by a fellow inmate and seriously injured at the Federal Correctional Institution in Tuscon, Arizona, a source told The Associated Press. FCI Tucson is a medium-security prison that has reportedly faced problems with security and staffing.

In a Friday press release, the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) confirmed that an “individual” at the prison in Arizona had been assaulted around 12:30 P.M. The FBI had also been notified, according to the release.

“No employees were injured during the incident,” the BOP’s statement read. “Responding employees initiated life-saving measures for one incarcerated individual. Emergency Medical Services (EMS) were requested while life-saving efforts continued. The incarcerated individual was transported by EMS to a local hospital for further treatment and evaluation.”

The BOP did not reveal the identity of the person who was assaulted. 

Chauvin was sent to FCI Tucson in August 2022 to serve simultaneous sentences for violating Floyd’s civil rights and for second-degree murder.

Floyd’s killing in May 2020 sparked a civil rights movement and reckoning about the historical treatment of Black people in the U.S. by both institutions and individuals.

The Supreme Court rejected an appeal of his murder conviction by Chauvin last week. 

The Hill has reached out to Chauvin’s lawyer and the FBI. 

The Associated Press contributed.