Minority Corrections Officers Say They Were Barred From Guarding Former Cop, Derek Chauvin
According to The New York Post, a total of eight minority corrections officers in Minnesota have filed discrimination charges with the state’s Department of Human Rights after they claim they were barred from guarding Derek Chauvin!
RELATED: Former Minneapolis Officer Derek Chauvin Moved To Maximum-Security Prison
As we previously reported, Chauvin was the former Minneapolis Officer who knelt on George Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes until he fell unconscious and died. Chauvin was arrested and booked at the Ramsey County Jail the day he was charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter. He was later hit with an upgraded charge of second-degree murder.
According to the Star Tribune, as Chauvin was brought to the lockup, all officers of color were ordered to another floor. Apparently, a supervisor told one of the minority officers that, because of their race, they would be a possible “liability” around Chauvin, the news outlet reported, citing their allegations.
“I understood that the decision to segregate us had been made because we could not be trusted to carry out our work responsibilities professionally around the high-profile inmate — solely because of the color of our skin,” wrote one acting sergeant, who is black, the New York Post reports citing the Star Tribune.
“I am not aware of a similar situation where white officers were segregated from an inmate,” the officer added.
Meanwhile, Jail Superintendent Steve Lydon apparently told his bosses that he made a call “to protect and support” minority personnel by shielding them from Chauvin 10 minutes before he arrived to the facility. Lydon reportedly explained during an internal probe:
“Out of care and concern, and without the comfort of time, I made a decision to limit exposure to employees of color to a murder suspect who could potentially aggravate those feelings.” The news outlet notes that Lydon has since been demoted.
Bonnie Smith, an Attorney who is representing the corrections officers, said the order affected their morale:
“I think they deserve to have employment decisions made based on performance and behavior,” she told the paper. “Their main goal is to make sure this never happens again.”
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