LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The guilty verdict of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, convicted of murder in the death of George Floyd, marked a historic moment for the country.
"I think what we saw last summer, with people not having the benefit of being distracted by sports and other types of things, people were seeing it on the news all the time," said Attorney General Aaron Ford about how we got to this moment.
WATCH ON DEMAND | Bridging the Divide: Las Vegas community leaders discuss Derek Chauvin verdict
"And being able to finally see as an example things that people from my community have been talking about and experiencing for generations," he said.
13 Action News also asked the attorney general about the Jorge Gomez case. Gomez was shot and killed by police in downtown Las Vegas during last year's protest sparked by the death of Floyd.
Ford says he is watching the case closely but from afar because it's in the jurisdiction of District Attorney Steve Wolfson.
When asked about the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, Ford says "even the great can always be greater" and that the department should continue to look to improve.
The attorney general also brought up two bills in the Nevada Legislature brought forward by his office.
"I think the timing is interesting," said Ford of the Chauvin verdict. "In the sense that the legislature had a big deadline yesterday to get certain bills passed out of their respective chambers or they would die. And two bills of mine passed two days in a row."
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"One of which is my no-knock bill [SB 50] which limits the use of no-knock warrants, and that I brought in the immediate response to the Breonna Taylor killing in Louisville, Kentucky," he said.
"The other is a pattern and practice bill [AB 58] that the assembly passed yesterday that allows my office to do investigations into police departments that are alleged to have patterns and practices of discriminatory or otherwise unlawful policing practices."
"I am proud of the fact that our office was able to get that out -- unanimously. That's important to note," he said. "This was not a partisan vote."
Watch the full interview below.
DIGITAL EXCLUSIVE | Watch the full interview with AG Aaron Ford:
