Derek Chauvin Stabbed, Seriously Hurt In Federal Prison: Report

TUCSON, AZ — Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer convicted of murdering George Floyd, was stabbed by another inmate and seriously injured Friday at a federal prison in Arizona, The Associated Press reported Friday.

Chauvin was treated for "life-saving measures" at the prison at about 12:30 p.m. before being hospitalized.

The stabbing happened at the federal prison in Tucson, a medium-security prison that has seen recent security lapses and staffing shortages, according to AP.

No employees were injured and the FBI was notified, the Bureau of Prisons told AP. The facility has about 380 inmates. Visiting was suspended.

Chauvin, 47, was sent to the Tucson prison from a maximum-security Minnesota state prison last year. He's serving a simultaneous 21-year federal sentence for violating Floyd’s civil rights, and a 22 ½-year state sentence for second-degree murder.

Chauvin’s lawyer, Eric Nelson, had advocated for keeping him out of the general population and away from other inmates, anticipating he could be targeted.

The stabbing comes after the U.S. Supreme Court last week rejected Chauvin’s appeal of his murder conviction.

Floyd, who was Black, died May 25, 2020, after Chauvin, who is white, pressed a knee on his neck for over 9 minutes on the street outside a convenience store where Floyd was suspected of trying to pass a counterfeit $20 bill.

Bystander video captured Floyd’s fading cries of “I can’t breathe.” His death touched off protests worldwide, some of which turned violent, and forced a national reckoning with police brutality and racism.

The Associated Press contributed reporting.