Elon Musk said on Wednesday that the police officer accused of killing George Floyd in May 2020 needs to be freed from custody after he was wrongly convicted of murder.
The Tesla and SpaceX head argued that former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin did not receive a fair trial and that he is a political prisoner.
“Derek Chauvin was unjustly convicted of murder, therefore he should be freed,” Musk wrote on his page. “The facts show that he was not the cause of death, nor did he at any time intend for a death to occur.”
Musk concluded, “Whatever else he may be, he is not a murderer. That is the truth.”
Derek Chauvin was unjustly convicted of murder, therefore he should be freed.
The facts show that he was not the cause of death, nor did he at any time intend for a death to occur. Whatever else he may be, he is not a murderer.
That is the truth.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 19, 2026
Musk’s statement came one day after Chauvin filed a new petition seeking to vacate his state murder conviction in the Memorial Day 2020 death of Floyd, who was stopped by police after attempting to pass a counterfeit bill.
CBS News reported:
In the petition, Chauvin’s legal team is requesting a court order declaring that the assignment of authority of the case to Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison was “illegitimate” and a violation of his due process rights.
Additionally, they’re asking for a court order declaring that the failure of the Hennepin County District Court to convene a grand jury before any charging decision and the failure of prosecutors to secure an indictment also violated Chauvin’s due process rights.
Chauvin was convicted in 2021 of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter.
He received a 22-year state sentence and a concurrent 21-year federal sentence after pleading guilty to willfully violating Floyd’s civil rights.
Body-camera and bystander video show Floyd telling officers “I can’t breathe” multiple times before he was fully placed prone on the ground and during the subsequent restraint.
Floyd also made the statement while still in or being removed from a squad car and during the struggle as officers attempted to secure him.
Chauvin was portrayed as a rogue militant for using a routine police move to subdue unruly crime suspects.
He placed a knee over Floyd’s upper back and neck area, which is a move that was consistent with his training, per numerous former Minneapolis officers.
Toxicology results showed he had taken fentanyl and other drugs prior to the interaction with police.
Critics of the original prosecution, including some legal commentators and Chauvin’s defense team, have long argued that intense public pressure, widespread riots, and the actions of state leaders such as Democratic Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, denied Chauvin a fair trial.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
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