(Publisher’s Note: When the trial started, Ron remembered other trials and other verdicts. That’s why he lacked confidence when former a Minneapolis went on trial for murdering a black man on May 25. Today, however, perhaps he believes justice was served.)
On the first day of the Derek Chauvin trial in Minneapolis, Minn., Ron Scott Jr. appeared on LEDE News’ “Steve Novotney Lives” podcast.
The first question Scott, Community Outreach and Cultural Diversity Director for Wheeling YWCA, was asked during the show was, “What’s at risk as far as this verdict is concerned?”
His answer?
“It’s going to be a defining moment in this country,” Scott said.
Chauvin, a 19-year veteran of the Minneapolis Police Department, immediately was fired one day after the death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020. Video and photographs confirmed Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes even though the victim was handcuffed and face down. He was charged with second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter charges in Floyd’s death.
Chauvin was one of four officers involved in Floyd’s arrest after he allegedly attempted to pass a fake $20 bill at a convenient store in South Minneapolis. Prior to the fatal incident involving the 46-year-old Floyd, Chauvin was the subject in 19 misconduct reports.
“The thing that’s different about this case is that we all saw it go down because so many people recorded it,” Scott said. “There was a camera across the street, too, so anyone who has paid attention to the case has been able to see pretty much everything that went down that day.”
Ron Scott Jr., though, has refused to pay much attention to the Chauvin trial this past week, and that’s because of that “defining moment.”
“There’s a lot at stake here with this trial,” he explained. “I have seen all of the photos and all of the video, but I’ve decided not to pay attention to too much of the trial because, I guess, I don’t want to get my hopes up too much. Far too many black men in this country have been the victims of police brutality, but what’s happened?
“And they say this trial is supposed to last two months? That doesn’t make much sense to me or a lot of people in the black community,” he said. “That’s just another reason, though, that this trial will produce that defining moment.”
The City of Minneapolis paid Floyd’s family $27 million in March to settle the family’s wrongful death lawsuit. Protests followed Floyd’s death, including one that took place in front of the Ohio County Courthouse last year.
Ron Scott Spoke During the Event
Ron Scott Jr. was in attendance and spoke during the peaceful event.
“And ya know what, here in Wheeling and around the country, I saw more members of the country’s white community participating in those protests, and that told me something,” he said. “It told me that more people were finally catching on to something that has been taking place in this country for far too long.
“But see, here’s the thing. If there’s a guilty verdict, and the man goes to jail for what he did to George Floyd, then it would feel like we’re finally making that progress. If not? If it’s innocent, though, I believe the black community will withdraw, and that’s the defining moment I’m talking about.”
