The wife of Derek Chauvin, the fired police officer charged with murdering George Floyd, has filed for divorce, according to a statement from her lawyers.
“This evening, I spoke with Kellie Chauvin and her family. She is devastated by Mr. Floyd’s death and her utmost sympathy lies with his family, with his loved ones and with everyone who is grieving this tragedy. She has filed for dissolution of her marriage to Derek Chauvin,” Kellie Chauvin’s attorneys said.
“While Ms. Chauvin has no children from her current marriage, she respectfully requests that her children, her elder parents, and her extended family be given safety and privacy during this difficult time,” they added.
Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for several minutes while arresting him on Monday. Floyd became unresponsive during the arrest and was later pronounced dead.
“Please, please, please, I can’t breathe,” Floyd can be heard saying in a video of the arrest. “Don’t kill me.”Relax,” Chauvin responds.
Chauvin was arrested and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman announced in a press conference on Friday afternoon. Chauvin and three other officers involved with the arrest were fired on Tuesday.
“This is by far the fastest we’ve ever charged a police officer,” Freeman said.
Floyd’s family later issued a statement, calling for more serious charges against Chauvin.
“The arrest of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin for the brutal killing of George Floyd is a welcome but overdue step on the road to justice. We expected a first-degree murder charge. We want a first-degree murder charge,” the family said through their attorney, Ben Crump.
“And we want to see the other officers arrested,” the statement added. “We call on authorities to revise these charges to reflect the true culpability of this officer. The pain that the black community feels over this murder and what it reflects about the treatment of black people in America is raw and is spilling out on to the streets across America.”
