By Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News

Troy Warren for CNT

Former officer would serve time concurrently with 22½-year state sentence

Former Minnesota police officer and convicted killer Derek Chauvin is considering a plea deal with federal prosecutors to avoid a potential life sentence on civil rights charges in George Floyd’s death, Minneapolis station WCCO-TV is reporting.

The deal would allow Chauvin to serve a 20- to 25-year sentence concurrently with the 22½-year sentence that was handed down last week in state court, WCCO reported citing multiple sources.

Chauvin would also be allowed to serve his sentence in a federal lockup.

If he decides to proceed with a trial and loses again, the 45-year-old former cop could face life behind bars.

On Friday, Chauvin delivered a cryptic message to Floyd’s family in the Minneapolis courtroom.

“At this time, due to some additional legal matters at hand, I’m not able to give a full formal statement at this time. But very briefly though, I do want to give my condolences to the Floyd family,” Chauvin said. “There’s gonna be some other information in the future that would be of interest, and uh, I hope that things will give you some peace of mind. Thank you.”

Sources speculated that Chauvin was referring to a plea deal on the federal level, according to WCCO. Part of that agreement could compel Chauvin to confess what was going through his mind when he remained kneeled on Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes, according to prosecutors.

Chauvin was convicted of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill could have sentenced him to as many as 40 years behind bars.