The Minnesota GOP convention held a moment of silence for Derek Chauvin six years after the former Minneapolis police officer murdered George Floyd.

Christopher Rocco, a delegate from St Paul, proposed the controversial 30-second tribute after Saturday's convention opened with a prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance.

'I apologize because I know you asked me not to do this. I'd like to suspend the rules for a moment of reflection for Derek Chauvin,' Rocco told the crowd, audio captured at the conference revealed.

He went on to say that Chauvin, who was convicted of killing Floyd after kneeling on his neck for more than nine minutes, should 'get a state retrial' and a 'federal pardon.'

Convention chairman state Rep. Danny Nadeau, an obvious shock in his tone, corrected Rocco before putting the motion before the delegates.

'I said I preferred – I'll tell you what. I'm gonna put it to the body. I'm gonna let the body vote. If you would like to have a short 30 seconds stand in silence for Derek Chauvin, all say aye,' he said.

A loud 'aye' erupted from the crowd, the audio, first published by the Minnesota Reformer, showed. A quieter round of 'nays' replied after Nadeau asked 'opposed?' The moment of silence then took place. 

In a video on his YouTube Channel Rocco's Had Enough, the delegate defended his motion and peddled a conspiracy theory about the cause of Floyd's death.

'It was me at the Minnesota GOP convention this weekend that brought the motion uh before the body to have a moment of silence for Derek Chauvin,' Rocco told viewers.

'Not because he died, but because the moment you were silent on injustice is the moment that you are complicit in injustice.'

He then went on to blast the Democrats and his own Republican party for the response to Floyd's murder six years ago.

He accused Democrats of needing a 'sacrifice for their altar of power' ahead of the 2020 election, which Donald Trump ultimately lost to Joe Biden.

'Derek and the other officers were the spark. Floyd was the fuse,' he said, before going on to call Floyd a career criminal who died of an overdose.

Floyd's cause of death was ruled as 'cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint, and neck compression' by the county coroner. Footage of Chauvin with his knee on Floyd's neck as Floyd shouted 'I can't breathe' stunned the world and set off riots across the US, while also turbocharging DEI measures across many public and private bodies. 

He then defended standing in support of the killer and condemned the Republicans who criticized his actions.

'You liberals want to know why someone spoke out for Derek Chauvin? It's because he doesn't have a voice,' Rocco said.

'And for a party that claims to speak for the voiceless, you shame yourself with your silence. I'm not ashamed of the stand that I made. I was raised to fight injustice, not encourage mob rule to stoke it.' 

Nadeau told the Reformer that Rocco had approached him beforehand and he asked him not to make the motion.

The chairman claims he told Rocco it was a  'very divisive issue' and that it was 'not the time or the place.'

He added that while he was careful not to interject his personal opinions when moderating the convention, but personally 'would never offer such a motion.'

'I don't question even remotely whether he was rightfully convicted,' Nadeau added. 

The moment of silence for Chauvin has been met with criticism from across the political aisles. 

Democrat Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison on Sunday issued a statement branding the tribute as 'disturbing' and 'disrespectful.'

'To honor the man convicted of murdering George Floyd – days after the very anniversary of that terrible day – is an act of profound cruelty to the Floyd family and to every Minnesotan who believes in accountability under law,' Ellison said. 

Democrat state representative Jamie Long echoed Ellison's remark, writing in a post on X: 'The MN GOP opened their convention with a moment of silence for Derek Chauvin. Not for those we lost to gun violence. Not for soldiers killed overseas. 

'To a literal convicted murderer. Disgusting.'

A Minnesota GOP spokesperson told KSTP that the motion 'was not a statement from party leadership.'

'A moment of silent prayer should not be mischaracterized as an official policy position, platform statement, or message from the Republican Party of Minnesota,' the spokesperson said. 'It was a floor action taken by delegates, not leadership.' 

Kendall Qualls, who has been endorsed by the GOP for Minnesota governor, deflected when asked about the incident in an interview with WCCO.

'I don't know. That was probably not the venue to do that, or the timing to do that,' he told radio host Chad Hartman.

Qualls then added: 'I do have my own concerns about the trial itself and the condition of Derek Chauvin, how he was treated.'