Note: Reading accounts of the testimonies about George Floyd’s death can be difficult and tough to digest.
On May 25, 2020, 46-year old black man George Floyd was killed by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who pinned Floyd down under his knee for over 9 minutes. The video of the incident went viral and caused nationwide outrage. People worldwide began protesting and rioting against the clear systemic racism and police brutality that resulted in Floyd’s death. Chauvin pleaded not guilty to second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter charges. If convicted, he could face up to 40 years in prison for second-degree murder, up to 25 years for third-degree murder, and up to 10 years for second-degree manslaughter. His criminal trial began Monday, March 29th.
Although the jurors for the trial remain unnamed, there are some key factors that have become known about them. Eight of them are white, four are black, and two are of mixed race—consisting of nine women and five men.
Friday, April the 2nd served as the 5th day of Chauvins’s trial. Here are some updates from what’s already happened in the trial.
Day 1:
Both Chauvin’s defense attorney and the prosecutor centered their opening statements centered for the case on Floyd’s cause of death and the influence of Chauvin’s use of force.
Prosecutor Jerry W. Blackwell argued that Chauvin’s use of excessive force wasn’t in line with the training and policies of the Minneapolis Police Department. He stated, “We are bringing this case, this prosecution, against Mr. Chauvin for the excessive force he applied on the body of Mr. George Floyd, for engaging in behavior that was imminently dangerous, and the force that he applied without regard for its impact on the life of Mr. George Floyd.” He focused on the video of the incident, which had gone viral nearly a year earlier—but explicitly said that the trial was not about the police in general, but about Derek Chauvin’s actions.
On the other hand, Chauvin’s defense attorney Eric Nelson, claimed that the case “is clearly more than about 9 minutes and 29 seconds.” He further went on to state that Floyd’s death was caused by underlying medical conditions, and that the evidence would show Floyd died of a cardiac arrhythmia resulting from his hypertension, coronary disease, the presence of methamphetamine and fentanyl in his system, and the “adrenaline flowing through his body.” He further claimed that there was “no evidence that Mr. Floyd’s airflow was restricted.” Nelson attempted to manipulate the trial to pin Floyd’s death on his addiction, although many sources—including his autopsy—have written that statement off as false. The defense also urged jurors to ignore and disregard the social and political outrage that followed Floyd’s murder.
It was also noted that Mr. Floyd’s exact cause of death will prove to be one of the most crucial points of this trial. Thus, the state would call seven medical experts, including Dr. Andrew Baker—the Hennepin County medical examiner who performed the autopsy on Mr. Floyd, classifying his death as a homicide.
While the defense will try to prove that Chauvin’s use of force was necessary, the prosecution will aim to prove that it was excessive, unreasonable, and unlawful. Furthermore, they will try to prove that Chauvin continued to use force even after Floyd had lost consciousness.
The first witness called to testify was Jena Lee Scurry, the 911 dispatcher who called the police while witnessing Floyd’s arrest. She was watching a fixed police camera on Chicago Avenue that showed Floyd as he was being detained by Officer Chauvin and colleagues. She claimed that “I first asked if the screens had frozen because it hadn’t changed.” She called Chauvin’s supervising sergeant, and even claimed she felt like a snitch—but she could tell something was wrong and felt the need to report it. In defense attorney Nelson’s cross-examination of Scurry, he stated that she was not a police officer, and thus did not have the same police training as Chauvin.
Bystander Alisha Oyler was the next witness called to trial, and she stated that she felt compelled to record the incident because police are “always messing with people.”
The next testimony was by Donald Wynn Williams II, a professional mixed martial arts fighter who stumbled onto the scene during the incident. His testimony was emotional, as he stated that he’d heard Floyd saying things like “I can’t breathe” and “I want my mom.” He stated that Floyd’s struggle was due to Chauvin’s knee on his neck. Using his own knowledge of martial arts, he also said that Chauvin performed a “blood choke” on Floyd.
Day 2:
Williams’ testimony continued on day two of the trial. He started to get emotional and teary-eyed as the tape of his 911 call from the day of Floyd’s death was played for the jury. He testified that he called 911 after the ambulance took Floyd because he believed he witnessed a murder. Nelson’s cross-examination of Williams became intense as he attempted to prove that Williams got “angrier” as the incident progressed. The defense questioned him about different statements Williams had made to the officers, including calling them “bums” 13 times. However, Williams remained strong and told Nelson “You can’t paint me out to be angry.”
The following four witnesses were not recorded for video broadcast because they were minors on the day of the incident. The first one, Darnella Frazier had walked by during the incident, and stated that she felt threatened by former police officer Chauvin, and that she was in danger. They had pulled out their mace, and even though Frazier is not sure whether they pointed it at them, they “definitely put their hand on the mace,” and that she was confused why they felt the need to do that. Her testimony was also an emotional one, as she spoke of her black relatives who could have had the same thing happen to them as Floyd. She also spoke of her guilt for not “doing more” to help him. Frazier’s 9-year old cousin testified next and said she could tell Chauvin was hurting him and stopping his breathing.
Genevieve Hansen, a Minneapolis firefighter, was the third witness to call the police on Chauvin for what he was doing to Floyd. Her testimony was also emotional as she called her witness to the event. The officers tried stopping her from helping Floyd, but she recounts that she should have helped him and given him medical attention. She was one of the several witnesses who stated they felt “helpless”.
The testimonies from this day largely focused on the trauma that followed those who witnessed the arrest of Floyd. Most of the testimonies were emotional and filled with rage and grief—proving how much it’s had an effect on them.
Day 3:
The next witness called to trial was the Cup Foods cashier, who’d been with Floyd prior to his arrest. He said that he quickly realized that the $20 bill Floyd had used to buy cigarettes was fake, and the store manager asked another employee to call the police on him.
Later in the day, they played the videos of the incident from the body cameras of the police officers, allowing the jurors to witness the incident from all perspectives. It was clear from the beginning of the video that Floyd did not pose a threat to the officers. When put into the police vehicle, Floyd was crying and repeating that he was claustrophobic and scared. Later, when Floyd went unconscious, an officer told Chauvin that he couldn’t find a pulse but Chauvin didn’t react. Furthermore, they took no action to address Floyd’s state when he went completely limp.
These videos also included Chauvin’s defense of his actions. He was heard saying, “We got to control this guy because he’s a sizable guy, and it looks like he is probably on something.” Witnesses can also be heard urging the officers to check on Floyd’s pulse.
Charles McMillian, a man who watched the officers detain Floyd, also broke down on the stand during his testimony. They showed him a video of the incident, and McMillian was heard in the video telling Floyd to get into the car. He told the officer that Floyd was saying he couldn’t breathe, and Chauvin responded that he was talking, so he was breathing.
Day 4:
Thursday’s trial included the testimonies of paramedics at the scene, allowing the jurors to hear about Floyd’s medical state following Chauvin’s use of force on him—and bringing the trial to a more technical phase. Paramedic Derek Smith stated that when he arrived at the scene, he “thought he was dead.” He had no pulse by the time they arrived, and Smith’s attempt to save Floyd with the defibrillator was unsuccessful. His testimony could support the prosecution’s statement that Chauvin’s actions killed Floyd. Chauvin’s attorney Nelson stated that Chauvin’s knee was on Floyd’s back, not the neck, during his cross-examination of Smith. In response, Smith referred to videos of the arrest, proving that his knee was on Floyd’s neck.
Afterward, fire captain Jeremy Norton testified, “I was aware that a man had been killed in police custody, and I wanted to notify my supervisors to notify the appropriate people above us in the city, in the fire department and whoever else, and then I also wanted to inform my deputy that there was an off-duty firefighter, who was a witness at the scene.”
Later, Floyd’s girlfriend Courtney Ross testified that they’d been together since 2017, and they were until his death. As she described Floyd, the prosecutor began to question her about Floyd’s use of opioids. They attempted to get ahead of the defense team’s arguments. She said that both she and Floyd had struggled with opioid addiction. They’d been prescribed opioids to treat chronic pain, and then developed an addiction for which they turned to street drugs.
Lastly, Chauvin’s supervisor Sergeant David Pleoger testified for the jury. After seeing the body camera footage, he said that Chauvin’s use of force on Floyd should have ended earlier since force should stop once the officer is in control of the person. Although he said that restraining the neck is reasonable, it should’ve been stopped when the person is no longer “combative”. Prosecutors said that Chauvin continued to hold Floyd down under his knee for three minutes and 51 seconds after Floyd had passed out and lost consciousness. Pleoger also spoke more on police policy that Chauvin and his colleagues should have carried out. There’s a requirement to call an ambulance and to offer emergency aid in the meantime. He also should have laid Floyd on his side in order to help his breathing, since it would be compromised after being in that position under Chauvin’s knee for that long of a time.
Pleoger also spoke on Chauvin’s recount of the event from that day. He called his supervisor and said, “We just had to hold a guy down. He was going crazy.” Pleoger testified that Chauvin stated Floyd became combative as they tried to put him in the police vehicle and that he had a medical emergency—he did not state that he had used his knee on Floyd or that he’d used excessive force. This was the second time the jury witnessed Chauvin verbally defending his actions against Floyd.
Day 5:
The most recent day of the trial was Friday, April 2nd, 2021. Jurors heard from two police officers, who described what they saw at the scene. Lt. Richard Zimmerman of the Minneapolis department’s homicide unit reported that he’d never been trained to restrain someone’s neck. He testified that Chauvin’s use of force against Floyd was “totally unnecessary,” and that it should have “absolutely” stopped when Floyd was lying facedown on the ground while handcuffed. He further said that it was “uncalled for.” He was only one of a group of 14 retired officers who published a letter condemning Chauvin’s actions. The letter wrote, “This is not who we are.”
The other witness of the day, Sergeant Jon Curtis Edwards said that he secured the crime scene. He also stated that neither officer still on the scene had their cameras activated, and Edwards told them to do so.
Statements from the police are going to be pivotal for this trial. Because the trial has reached a technical stage, prosecutors will now use these statements to prove that Chauvin violated the police department’s use of force policies and that his actions were unnecessary and unlawful.
The trial has already taught the world a lot more information that wasn’t previously known, such as Chauvin’s statements of defense. It has also proved how essential it is that Floyd get justice, through the emotional and moving testimonies of the witnesses.