Giffords Responds to Guilty Verdict in the Derek Chauvin Murder Trial

Washington DC—Giffords, the gun violence prevention organization founded by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, reacted to the guilty verdicts on all counts in the trial of former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd.

Statement from Giffords Executive Director Peter Ambler & Giffords Law Center Executive Director Robyn Thomas:

“Derek Chauvin will now be held accountable for murdering George Floyd—yet that won’t reunite George with his family. George Floyd should still be alive today. There is the ongoing trauma experienced by Black and Brown Americans who still have to wonder whether any encounter with police officers sworn to protect them will end in violence. We must continue to fight for reforms of policing and our justice system until Black and Brown Americans no longer live in fear of being targeted and harmed by the police, and until these preventable tragedies no longer tear apart families and communities.

“We stand with Black and Brown communities who are most impacted by this violence. We stand for equity and justice, and we are committed to turning our outrage over police violence and other forms of systemic racism into action.”

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Our experts can speak to the full spectrum of gun violence prevention issues. Have a question? Email us at media@giffords.org.

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Giffords recently called for a thorough and transparent investigation into the killing of Daunte Wright and accountability from the officers responsible. Daunte’s death happened 10 miles away from where Chauvin’s trial took place. The organization also recently decried the murder of 13-year-old Adam Toledo at the hands of police. Giffords advocates for legislative reform to help bring broader systemic change, transparency, and accountability to law enforcement.

For more on how high-profile incidents of police violence lead to plummeting trust in law enforcement and cycles of community violence, read Giffords Law Center’s 2020 report, In Pursuit of Peace: Building Police-Community Trust to Break the Cycle of Violence.

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IN PURSUIT OF PEACE

Our report, How America’s Gun Laws Fuel Armed Hate, examines how our nation’s gun laws allow hate crime perpetrators to access weapons and carry out attacks.