At his June 25 sentencing hearing, former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has the right to speak on his own behalf before the judge imposes the sentence. Here is what he might say.
Your honor, police work is a job like no other. Unlike most professionals, when police officers leave home on a night shift, their spouses and children pray that they will come home safe the next morning. They have reason to fear.
Last year alone, 295 American police officers were killed on the job, and many thousands more were injured. Cops run these outsized risks for a variety of reasons, but money is hardly among them. The average cop makes slightly more than a letter carrier but slightly less than a UPS driver.
