Joplin residents of color, activists say Chauvin verdict offers justice

Apr. 21—Members of Joplin's Black community and local police forces alike said Tuesday that the guilty verdict former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was assessed in last year's killing of George Floyd provides some justice and is reflective of a changing culture that is more aware of racial injustice and police brutality.

Victor Sly, a police officer at Missouri Southern State University, felt elated and relieved by Tuesday's verdict. Sly also is the president of the Joplin NAACP but spoke to the Globe as a person of color and as a police officer, not on behalf of the local NAACP.

He described the verdict, which was rendered for Floyd's death after Chauvin pressed his knee to his neck for approximately nine minutes, as a surprise. His initial feelings going into the Chauvin trial were a mix of disappointment, frustration and anger, and he originally thought Chauvin would be found guilty on lesser charges.

"Most people who have been watching and following this since it happened feel that he (Floyd) was murdered on national television," Sly said. "There was a thought that when this guy goes to trial, he's guilty. When a cop is put on trial, you just never know because they're held at a different standard than your average citizen. I felt all of these emotions when it happened because not only is it another dark spot on law enforcement, but as a Black man, here's another unjust murder of a person of color again by the hands of law enforcement."

Sly believes the justice system did its job and held Chauvin accountable for his actions, which he hopes will give Floyd's family some peace. He said he can't help but feel relieved that the trial is over.

"The legal system worked, and the prosecutor put on a great case," Sly said. "The facts and evidence were there. You can go back in history and look at a lot of cases like this and scratch your head and ask, 'Why didn't they come to the same verdict as they did today?' The climate and the culture in law enforcement is changing. Cops can't go out and shoot unarmed people. There's no justification for that. If you're scared of unarmed people, you need another profession."

Sly said the next step is for reformation of the legal system and for people around the nation to start looking at what they can change about themselves to create a more inclusive society.

"Law enforcement, we're stuck in a time zone," he said. "We have to change, not the people. As an officer, you have to look at yourself in the mirror and ask: 'What is my bias toward people?' Once you recognize that and start dealing with it, that's when you can empathize with others. You can't treat everybody as a criminal."

'Justice has come'

Members of Joplin for Justice also said they were celebrating Tuesday. The group formed last year in an effort to make the Joplin area more welcoming and inclusive through collective community action. The group has held several peaceful rallies throughout Jasper County to bring attention to racial injustice and police brutality and to hold local politicians accountable, and organizers of Joplin for Justice last summer erected an "I can't breathe" billboard on Range Line Road to bring attention to Floyd's death.

The group said Tuesday it approved of the outcome of the trial but believes the fight for racial justice is far from over.

"Joplin for Justice members collectively celebrate the guilty verdict as the evidence was clear: George Floyd was murdered and there was no justification for it," the group said in a collective statement to the Globe. "Though no conviction can make right such horrific wrongs or take the grief from the family of George Floyd, we are celebrating that justice has come.

"Still, we have so much work to do to address the racial injustices and use of force within the criminal justice system. Our community must continue to stand and progress related to racial injustice. Getting in good trouble is not over. Collectively we will continue to be a voice; together we will continue to stand for justice."

Keenan Cortez, who is Joplin's mayor pro tem but spoke to the Globe only as a member of the community, said the verdict gave him hope.

"As a Black man living in this country and having witnessed countless times (how) it has not gone (the way) it has gone today, it has renewed hope in me that we can get this right," he said. "We can hold people accountable for breaking the law even if they are the law.

"The evidence was overwhelming of the guilt of Derek Chauvin, and I believe that is why it didn't take the jury very long to come back with their verdict. My ultimate hope is that today is the beginning of a needed conversation, not on defunding the police and not on dismantling the police. We need to have responsible conversations about responsible policing."

Melodee Colbert Kean, a former Joplin City Council member and mayor who also is a former president of the National League of Cities, said that even though people saw the video of Floyd's death, "we still had to wait holding our breath" that the verdict would support the evidence.

"It also is important for people to realize it wasn't about people against the police," said Colbert Kean, who was Joplin's first Black mayor. "I can see how easily it could be turned that way. That's one hope I would stress. That it is not that. It is about justice. I just hope it empowers officers to hold their people accountable just like other people who have to hold their co-workers accountable."

Police response

Area law enforcement officials also were processing the verdict late Tuesday.

"From my viewpoint, I think the system worked," Joplin police Chief Sloan Rowland said following the verdict. "I think the prosecutor did a very thorough job of proving the case."

Rowland said his primary hope with respect to the impact of the verdict in Minneapolis is that it will bring some peace to the country as a whole. As a police chief who has from the start condemned Chauvin's actions as abhorrent, Rowland said he does not think a guilty verdict will turn out to be a negative for police across the nation and even has potential to improve relations with the communities police officers serve.

"I think it may restore some confidence in the judicial system," Rowland said.

Webb City police Chief Don Melton expressed some reluctance to comment on the verdict itself, not having been able to follow the case all that closely.

"We have things going on in the city here that have had my attention more than the case in Minneapolis," Melton explained.

But he acknowledged that the death of Floyd has had a significant effect on policing in America.

"We have taken the opportunity to review our use of force to see what we are doing right and where we can make improvements," Melton said.

Globe staff writers Kimberly Barker, Debby Woodin and Jeff Lehr contributed to this report.