In a surprising and concerning development, Elon Musk has joined calls to pardon Derek Chauvin, the former police officer convicted of killing George Floyd. Musk added his support after conservative media personality Ben Shapiro launched a petition urging Donald Trump to release Chauvin. Chauvin was found guilty of murdering Floyd in 2020, an act that sparked global protests.
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Shapiro’s petition states, “We urge you to immediately issue a pardon for Officer Derek Chauvin, who was wrongfully convicted and is currently serving a 22-and-a-half-year sentence for the murder of George Floyd and related federal charges.”
In his letter, Shapiro claimed that Floyd’s death triggered the Black Lives Matter (BLM) riots, which he argued caused property damage and heightened racial tensions in America. He asserted that there were “gaps in the evidence” during the trial and emphasized the “significant external pressure on the jury to deliver a guilty verdict, regardless of the evidence.” He stated, “In these conditions, there was no chance for impartial justice to function, and a man is now languishing in prison because of it.”
Chauvin is currently serving a state sentence for second-degree murder, along with a federal sentence for violating Floyd’s civil rights. In a tweet, Musk expressed his support for Shapiro’s controversial petition, stating, “Something to ponder.”
