GOP member defends murderer of George Floyd
State Rep. Amos O’Neal (D-Saginaw) testifies in the Regulatory Reform Committee on June 11, 2024, at the House Office Building in Lansing.
LANSING, Mich., April 16, 2025 — In the Homeland Security and Foreign Influence Oversight Subcommittee today, Republicans defended the actions of the ex-police officer, Derek Chauvin, who was convicted of murdering George Floyd.
“This behavior by the GOP representative is unacceptable. America has many troubles with police brutality and especially against Black folk. Breaking the law has consequences and from the verdict, justice was served. The former police officer was not wrongly convicted, but is getting the retribution our justice system demands,” said state Rep. Amos O’Neal (D-Saginaw), chair of the Michigan Legislative Black Caucus.
This inappropriate outburst by the state representative took place as part of questioning toward the Berrien County Sheriff’s Department, after its overview of the department’s drug interdiction efforts from 2015-24.
“Trying to justify the murder of George Floyd by pointing to fentanyl in his system is not only misleading, it’s morally reprehensible. The world saw exactly what happened: a man’s life taken in broad daylight by someone who was sworn to protect and serve. Excusing that brutality is an insult to the truth, to justice and to every person who has demanded accountability from our criminal justice system,” said state Rep. Stephanie A. Young (D-Detroit).
Chauvin was convicted and sentenced to serve 21 years in federal prison for violating Floyd’s civil rights and a 22 and a half year state sentence for second-degree murder. This was after video footage over nine minutes long showing Chauvin kneeling on Floyd’s neck went viral in May of 2020.
“It is deeply disturbing and unacceptable for any elected official to defend the actions of Derek Chauvin by invoking George Floyd’s toxicology report, as though drug use could somehow justify an officer kneeling on a man’s neck for over nine minutes. That kind of rhetoric doesn’t just ignore the facts and verdict of a jury, it disrespects the pain of an entire community and undermines efforts to build trust between law enforcement and the people they serve,” said state Rep. Tyrone Carter (D-Detroit).
Here in Michigan, residents have witnessed firsthand the consequences of unchecked law enforcement practices — from tragic lives lost to eroding public trust. While there have been renewed calls for reform and demands for transparency and accountability, not a single meaningful police reform bill has been enacted under Republican leadership.
The clip of committee is available to watch here.
###