Criminal justice system worked, Jersey reacts to Chauvin verdict (Opinion)
The criminal justice system worked. Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of both murder and manslaughter in death of George Floyd. Chauvin's knee had Floyd pinned to the pavement by his neck for just over 9 minutes. The video was horrific and hard to watch.
What was also hard to watch was all the rioting that took place after George Floyd died in his name. If only those that caused the damage had waited until the criminal justice system had played out, people who work so hard to stay afloat during the pandemic could still have had their businesses. What's going to be hard to watch and listen to is all the politicians, celebrities and athletes using a man's death to advance their brands and agendas.
I spent the night taking calls on the verdict on New Jersey 101.5. Many callers start with "I'm a white conservative..." or "I'm an African American..." each going to their respective platform to argue their point. How about "I'm a person with an opinion." I think the Beatles had it right all those years ago when they sang "Think for yourself, and I will be there with you." We need to stop trying to fit into others agendas and think for ourselves
For me, the death of George Floyd was not an indictment of the police but the actions of a bad officer. For every bad officer there are thousands of good ones who have to live with the actions of the bad ones. It was not about race but about a man that was allegedly committing a crime and an arrest that went too far. The police have never in our history been more diverse than they are right now.
Hopefully if we learn anything from this verdict, we learn the one thing we need to know to survive in this country. The criminal justice system worked. Here's the Twitter poll and some of the responses on my social media regarding the Derek Chauvin guilty verdict;
New Jersey's reaction to the Derek Chauvin verdict
The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Steve Trevelise. Any opinions expressed are Steve's own. Steve Trevelise is on New Jersey 101.5 Monday-Thursday from 7pm-11pm. Follow him on Twitter @realstevetrev.