Derek Chauvin expected to survive stabbing attack at Arizona prison. What we know

Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer convicted of murdering George Floyd, was stabbed and seriously injured by John Turscak, an ex-member of the Mexican mafia who was also incarcerated at a federal prison in Tucson, according to the Associated Press.

While a spokesperson for the Bureau of Prisons confirmed an incarcerated individual was assaulted, they would not confirm the identity or medical status of the victim. Brian Evans, a spokesperson for the Office of Minnesota Attorney General, confirmed Chauvin was stabbed.

"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," Attorney General Keith Ellison said in a statement.

A spokesperson for the Bureau of Prisons said that for privacy and safety reasons, they are not providing the name of the victim or their medical status. The spokesperson also declined to provide details on how or why Chauvin was in a medium-security prison.

The Associated Press reported the attack happened at the Federal Correctional Institution in Tucson, which is a medium-security prison.

At about 12:30 p.m. on Nov. 24, Turscak allegedly attacked Chauvin with an improvised knife in the prison's law library. The Bureau of Prisons said employees stopped the attack and performed "life-saving measures."

According to the Bureau of Prisons said that an incarcerated person was assaulted at the Federal Correctional Institution in Tucson around 12:30 p.m. on Friday. In a statement, the agency said responding employees contained the incident and performed lifesaving measures. The statement did not name the individual but said that they were taken to a hospital for further treatment and evaluation.

The Bureau of Prison's website stated visitation was closed until further notice.

Here is what we know so far.

Who is Derek Chauvin?

Derek Chauvin, 47, was sent from a maximum-security Minnesota state prison in August 2022 to serve his sentence at a medium-security prison in Tucson. Chauvin is serving a 21-year federal sentence for violating Floyd's civil rights while simultaneously serving a 22-and-a-half-year state sentence for second-degree murder.

Floyd, who was Black, died on May 25, 2020, after Chauvin, who is white, pressed a knee on his neck for more than 9 minutes on the street outside a convenience store where Floyd was suspected of trying to pass a counterfeit $20 bill.

Bystander video captured Floyd’s fading cries of “I can’t breathe.” His death launched protests worldwide, some of which turned violent, and forced a national reckoning with police brutality and racism.

Three other former officers who were at the scene received lesser state and federal sentences for their roles in Floyd’s death.

Where did Derek Chauvin's stabbing happen?

At about 12:30 p.m. on Nov. 24, Turscak allegedly attacked Chauvin with an improvised knife in the prison's law library. The Bureau of Prisons said employees stopped the attack and performed "life-saving measures."

According to the Bureau of Prisons website, federal prisons operate under five different security levels. Facilities are designated as either minimum, low, medium, high, or administrative; and facilities with different security levels that are near each other are known as prison complexes.

The Federal Correctional Institution in Tucson is a medium-security prison.

Medium security prisons FCIs have strengthened perimeters (often double fences with electronic detection systems), mostly cell-type housing, a wide variety of work and treatment programs, higher staff-to-inmate ratio than low-security prisons, and more internal controls.

What is the medical condition of Derek Chauvin?

A spokesperson for the Bureau of Prisons said that for privacy and safety reasons, they are not providing the name of the victim or their medical status.

No employees were injured and the FBI was notified, the Bureau of Prisons said.

Brian Evans, a spokesperson for the Office of Minnesota Attorney General, stated that Chauvin is expected to survive.

Where is Derek Chauvin being treated? Will he stay in Arizona?

Emery Nelson, a spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, declined to state where Chauvin was being treated. It remained unclear whether he would resume his prison sentence in Arizona.

AP reported that Chauvin's lawyer, Eric Nelson, had advocated for keeping him out of general population and away from other inmates, anticipating he’d be a target. In Minnesota, Chauvin was mainly kept in solitary confinement “largely for his own protection,” Nelson wrote in court papers last year.

Nelson's law office declined to provide comment on Saturday.

What is the history of violence at this prison?

In 2022, an incarcerated person at the Federal Correctional Facility in Tucson obtained a firearm at a prison camp, pulled out the gun in a visitation area and attempted to shoot a visitor in the head, according to The Associated Press.

The Associated Press said the gun misfired and the visitor was uninjured. The incident marked a major security lapse and massive breach of protocol, raising serious questions about the security practices in place at the Bureau of Prisons, which is responsible for more than 150,000 federal inmates.

This is the second high-profile person to be assaulted while serving their sentence in a federal prison within five months. Earlier this year at another federal prison in Florida, the Associated Press reported that Larry Nassar, the sports doctor who was accused of sexually abusing Olympic and college athletes, was stabbed multiple times by another inmate.

Who stabbed Derek Chauvin?

John Turscak, an ex-gang member of the Mexican Mafia, stabbed Chauvin 22 times at the Federal Correctional Institution in Tucson, federal prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said he would have killed Chauvin had correctional officers not responded so quickly and that he told investigators he thought about attacking Chauvin for about a month because the former officer, convicted of murdering George Floyd, is a high-profile inmate.

Prosecutor's said that Tursack later denied wanting to kill Chauvin, but they said he attacked Chauvin on Black Friday as a symbolic connection to the Black Lives Matter movement, and the "Black Hand" symbol associated with the Mexican Mafia.

Originally the Federal Bureau of Prisons declined to name a suspect involved in Chauvin's assault or confirm if a suspect had been identified.

"We do not discuss whether a particular individual is the subject of allegations, investigations, or sanctions. However, we can inform you the Federal Bureau of Investigation was notified," Nelson said in an email.

The Arizona Republic left messages seeking comment and details of the incident with the FBI.

How did Derek Chauvin's family react to news of the stabbing?

Another attorney for Chauvin told the Associated Press on Saturday that Chauvin's family has been kept in the dark by federal prison officials after he was stabbed in prison.

The lawyer, Gregory M. Erickson, slammed the lack of transparency by the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Erickson said Chauvin's family and his attorneys have hit a wall trying to obtain information about the attack from Bureau of Prisons officials. He said Chauvin's family has been forced to assume he is in stable condition, based only on news accounts, and has been contacting the prison repeatedly seeking updates but have been provided with no information.

"As an outsider, I view this lack of communication with his attorneys and family members as completely outrageous," Erickson said in a statement to the AP. "It appears to be indicative of a poorly run facility and indicates how Derek's assault was allowed to happen."

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Derek Chauvin stabbed in Arizona prison: What we know