Derek Chauvin, ex-officer convicted in George Floyd's killing, moved to Texas prison months after stabbing
MINNEAPOLIS — Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer convicted of killing George Floyd, was transferred to a federal prison in Texas almost nine months after he was stabbed in a different facility, the Federal Bureau of Prisons confirmed Tuesday.
Chauvin, 47, is now housed at the Federal Correctional Institution in Big Spring, a low-security prison. He was previously held in Arizona at FCI Tucson in August 2022 to simultaneously serve a 21-year federal sentence for violating Floyd's civil rights and a 22 1/2-year state sentence for second-degree murder.
Earlier this month, Chauvin was temporarily transferred to the Oklahoma Federal Transfer Center.
The transfer comes nearly nine months after Chauvin was stabbed 22 times in prison by a former gang leader and one-time FBI informant. The suspect, John Turscak, faces charges of attempted murder, assault with intent to commit murder, assault with a dangerous weapon and assault resulting in serious bodily injury for the stabbing.
Turscak, who is serving a 30-year sentence for crimes committed while a member of the Mexican Mafia prison gang, attacked Chauvin on Nov. 24, 2023. He told investigators he targeted the ex-Minneapolis police officer because of his notoriety for killing Floyd.
FCI Tucson, a medium-security prison, has been plagued by security lapses and staffing shortages. Chauvin's lawyer at the time, Eric Nelson, had advocated for keeping him out of the general population and away from other inmates, anticipating he would be a target.
Turscak, who was charged with attempted murder, told correctional officers he would have killed Chauvin had they not responded so quickly.
Another former Minneapolis officer, Thomas Lane, who held down Floyd's legs as the man struggled to breathe, was released from federal prison in Colorado on Tuesday, the Bureau of Prisons said. Lane, 41, was serving a three-year sentence for aiding and abetting manslaughter.
When Lane pleaded guilty, he admitted that he intentionally helped restrain Floyd in a way that he knew created an unreasonable risk and caused his death. He admitted that he heard Floyd say he couldn't breathe, knew Floyd fell silent, had no pulse and appeared to have lost consciousness.
Floyd, 46, died in May 2020 after Chauvin, who is white, pinned him to the ground with a knee on Floyd's neck as the Black man repeatedly said he couldn't breathe. Lane, who is white, held down Floyd's legs. J. Alexander Kueng, who is Black, knelt on Floyd's back, and Tou Thao, who is Hmong American, kept bystanders from intervening during the 9 1/2-minute restraint.
Kueng and Thao are both set to be released in 2025. Kueng is detained at a federal prison in Ohio and Thao at a facility in Kentucky, according to Bureau of Prisons records.
The killing, captured on bystander video, sparked protests in 2020 as part of a worldwide reckoning over racial injustice.
Lane is the first of the four officers convicted of crimes related to Floyd's killing to be released from prison. He served time for a federal sentence alongside his state sentence after being convicted of violating Floyd's civil rights.
Last month, Chauvin's attorney filed a brief asking that the judge in his federal case grant his motion to vacate for charges related to the death of Floyd. In the motion filed last November, Chauvin said he wouldn't have pleaded guilty to the charge had he known about the theories of Kansas pathologist Dr. William Schaetzel. Schaetzel doesn't believe Chauvin's actions caused Floyd's death.