Elon Musk calls for Derek Chauvin to be freed, claims he was ‘unjustly convicted’
The billionaire offered no evidence for his claim that Chauvin did not cause Floyd’s death, which the medical examiner ruled a homicide.
Elon Musk has moved from floating the idea of clemency for Derek Chauvin to demanding his release outright.
In a post on X Wednesday, the billionaire wrote that the former Minneapolis officer was “unjustly convicted of murder, therefore he should be freed,” asserting that Chauvin neither caused George Floyd’s death nor intended for anyone to die. He closed by declaring, “That is the truth.” As of Friday (Aug. 21) morning, the post had drawn roughly 13.5 million views. Musk’s post comes a day after lawyers for Chauvin petitioned the state of Minnesota to dismiss the murder charges against Chauvin in Floyd’s 2020 killing.
Derek Chauvin was unjustly convicted of murder, therefore he should be freed.
The facts show that he was not the cause of death, nor did he at any time intend for a death to occur. Whatever else he may be, he is not a murderer.
That is the truth.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 19, 2026
The claim runs against the evidentiary record. The Hennepin County Medical Examiner ruled Floyd’s death a homicide, attributing it to cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint and neck compression.
A Minnesota jury convicted Chauvin in 2021 on three counts; second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. He separately pleaded guilty to federal charges of violating Floyd’s civil rights, an admission that carries its own legal weight independent of the state verdict.
This isn’t Musk’s first involvement. As TMZ noted, when Ben Shapiro campaigned last year for a federal pardon, Musk amplified the effort by calling it “something to think about.” The difference now is the absence of hedging.
There’s also a practical ceiling on what a pardon could accomplish. Presidential clemency reaches only federal convictions, meaning Chauvin’s Minnesota sentence would remain in force regardless. He is serving concurrent state and federal terms, with release projected for 2037 and parole eligibility around 2035.
The timing carries weight for Black Americans who watched the nine minutes of footage that made Floyd’s name a global reference point and who have spent six years absorbing arguments that what they saw wasn’t what it appeared to be. Musk’s platform gives that argument a reach few individuals can match.
Musk offered no evidence supporting his characterization of the facts, and he did not address the medical examiner’s determination or Chauvin’s federal guilty plea.