Minnesota Attorney General’s office gave an informal update on the condition of former Minneapolis policeman Derek Chauvin, who was convicted in 2021 of murdering George Floyd.

"We have heard that he is expected to survive,” Attorney General Keith Ellison’s spokesperson Brian Evans said Sunday (Nov. 26), about Chauvin’s condition after a prison knife attack, in an emailed statement to Reuters.

Chauvin pleaded guilty in 2021 to federal charges of violating Floyd’s civil rights when he kneeled on the handcuffed Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes, ignoring the Black man’s plea to be allowed to breathe. In a separate state conviction, a jury in 2021 convicted Chauvin of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. 

Ellison’s office confirmed that Chauvin was stabbed on Friday (Nov. 24) while serving his 21-year federal prison sentence in Tucson, Ariz., The New York Times reported.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons statement, which did not identify Chauvin, said emergency medical technicians “initiated lifesaving measures” before taking the former cop to a local hospital. No other inmates or prison staff were injured.

“I am sad to hear that Derek Chauvin was the target of violence. He was duly convicted of his crimes and, like any incarcerated individual, he should be able to serve his sentence without fear of retaliation or violence,” Ellison said in an email statement Saturday (Nov. 25) to Reuters.

A shocking video of Chauvin’s violent arrest sparked nationwide demonstrations against police brutality and systemic racism in the criminal justice system.

Ellison oversaw Chauvin’s state prosecution. Chauvin is serving a concurrent 22 ½ year state sentence.