They Were Barred From Guarding Chauvin, Just Got $1.5M

The eight Minnesota corrections officers, all people of color, who say they were briefly kept from guarding or having any contact with Derek Chauvin as he waited to go on trial for the 2020 murder of George Floyd have now been awarded a settlement of $1.455 million. The officers, who identify as Black, Hispanic, Pacific Islander American, and multiracial, say that for about an hour, the former jail superintendent did not even allow them to enter the floor on which Chauvin was being held on the day he was arrested and brought in, USA Today reports. The order, which the plaintiffs referred to as a "segregation" order, was rescinded after about an hour.

The Ramsey County Board of Commissioners approved the settlement Tuesday, CNN reports. It also issued a statement apologizing for the actions of the detention center's then-superintendent, Steve Lydon. Those actions were "racist, heinous, highly disrespectful and completely out of line with Ramsey County's vision and values," the statement reads, adding, "No one ever should have questioned your ability to perform your job based on the color of your skin." Lydon was demoted, but still works for the Ramsey County Sheriff's Office. After the complaint was first made public, he said he was simply trying to protect officers of color from the "trauma" of having to be around Chauvin. (More Derek Chauvin stories.)