A friend of Sandra Bland, who was found dead in a jail cell after being apprehended by police in 2015, was standing near the Cups Food store where George Floyd was killed when she caught news of Derek Chauvin's guilty verdict. Though bittersweet, she told CNN reporter Omar Jimenez that the moment stands as proof that times are changing.

"My feeling was, it's very bittersweet because his family, much like a good friend of mine, Sandy Bland, Sandy as I knew her, will never see him again, will never touch him, will never hug him and his daughter will grow up without a father," she said. "They will never see him again and he's still six feet under so justice in my opinion will never be served but it is very bittersweet. It's at least something. We're getting somewhere in this country. We're seeing some progress."

Bland was pulled over in the summer of 2015 by state trooper Brian Encinia for failing to signal per Chron. During the traffic stop, Encinia said the then-28-year-old failed to follow his order to put out a cigarette and refused to get out of the car. After a physical altercation ensued, Bland was taken into custody and found hanging inside a cell three days later. 

After public outcry brought into question the lack of details surrounding Bland’s death, a former guard admitted to falsifying records stating that he checked in on Bland just before her death was discovered. 

Following Bland's mysterious death, trooper Encinia was fired and indicted on perjury after a grand jury cast doubt on his statement about removing Bland from her car to proceed in a more safe traffic stop.

In 2016, Bland’s family reached a settlement of $1.9 million in a federal wrongful death suit against Texas authorities. Under terms of the settlement, the Waller County jail will now utilize an on-duty nurse and emergency medical technician during all shifts.

Almost four years later, on May 25, 2020, Floyd was physically restrained during a fatal encounter with former Minneapolis police officer Chauvin who placed his knee into the Black father’s neck. Chauvin sat on Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes while bystanders urged him to check the dying man’s vitals.

On Tuesday, a jury in a Hennepin County courthouse found that Chauvin was guilty third-degree murder, second-degree unintentional murder and second-degree manslaughter, as Blavity previously reported. 

During the trial, a heart specialist testified that Chauvin had his knee jammed into Floyd's neck for more than three minutes after "there was not an ounce of oxygen left" in his body.

The former police officer pleaded not guilty to all three charges after a judge reinstated the charge of third-degree murder in March. 

In total, the second-degree unintentional murder could carry the largest penalty with a maximum of 40 years in prison. The lesser charge of third-degree murder could net Chauvin up to 25 years in prison, and the third charge of second-degree manslaughter carries a maximum of 10 years.

After this week's verdict, a sentencing hearing will be scheduled for a later date.