Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin pleaded guilty on Wednesday to federal charges of violating George Floyd’s civil rights.

The Guilty plea means Chauvin will not face a federal trial in January, but may spend more years behind bars when a judge sentences him at a later date. He previously pleaded not guilty to the charges, which were issued by a federal grand jury in May.

Chauvin, a white man, was convicted in April of Minnesota state charges of murder and manslaughter at a trial for the May 2020 killing of George Floyd, a black man he held under his knee for over 9 minutes during an arrest. Chauvin was sentenced then to 22 1/2 years in prison.

The federal charges included two counts alleging that Chauvin deprived Floyd of his rights by kneeling on his neck as he was handcuffed and not resisting, and then failing to provide him with needed medical care.

Chauvin appeared in person Wednesday in court wearing an orange prison shirt.

Federal prosecutors recommended 25 years in prison, though a judge will determine his sentence at a later date. The recommended sentence would extend his time behind bars by about six years if he earns credit for good behavior.

Three other former Minneapolis police officers — Thomas Lane, J. Kueng and Tou Thao — were indicted on federal charges with Chauvin earlier this year. Evidence in the state case against them shows the three helped Chauvin restrain Floyd by helping him keep him on the ground and holding back bystanders.

The former officers are expected to go to trial on federal charges in January, and they face state trial on aiding and abetting counts in March.

As Chauvin held his knee on Floyd’s back for over 9 minutes, Floyd repeatedly said, ‘I can’t breathe.’ His death was captured by a bystander using a cellphone to video tape the incident, which sparked nationwide protests calling for an end to racial inequality and police mistreatment of black people in America.

In Minnesota defendants with good behavior only serve two-thirds of their sentence in prison, with the remaining one-third on supervised release. If Chauvin exhibits good behavior he may only serve 15 years in prison, and 7 1/2 on parole.

As part of the plea deal, Chauvin also pleaded guilty to violating the rights of a 14-year-old boy who he held by the throat during a 2017 arrest. At the time, he had hit him in the head with a flashlight and held his knee on the boy’s neck and upper back while he was handcuffed and not resisting.

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