Sorry…he did three separate crimes (and possibly more). That’s why there are three separate charges: the murder, the manslaughter; and the assault. The “lesser included” crimes are often sentenced separately…at least here in Cook County where I have been a paralegal since 1978. Those other, lesser included crimes are USUALLY either dismissed or sentenced separately but run concurrent with the main event. Had Chauvin NOT been convicted of the murder, but of any one or both of the other two charges, the murder count would have been dismissed, but he would still face sentencing on the “lesser” charges.

That is exactly what happened here in the McQuan McDonald murder. The killer-cop in that case had several charges and sentences, and was convicted on at least two counts beyond the actual murder. His sentencing on each count ran neck-and-neck (concurrent) with the murder — about seven years total, of which he will probably only do about four. In Illinois, as might be expected, its been my experience and observation that these racist judges generally reserve the consecutive sentences for black and brown defendants. Minnesota, apparently, simply has a different system and just does not do that.

Thanks for reading and for a thought-provoking intelligent discourse.