Former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on George Floyd's head and neck for 4 minutes and 45 seconds as Floyd cried out for help, stayed on his neck as Floyd flailed and had seizures for 53 seconds, and then remained on a non-responsive Floyd for another 3 minutes and 51 seconds, prosecutors said during opening statements in Chauvin's criminal trial on Monday.
"Mr. Derek Chauvin betrayed this badge when he used excessive and unreasonable force upon the body of Mr. George Floyd," prosecuting attorney Jerry Blackwell said. "That he put his knees upon his neck and his back, grinding and crushing him until the very breath -- no, ladies and gentlemen -- until the very life was squeezed out of him."
The opening statements from Blackwell, as well as a rebuttal from Chauvin's defense team, highlighted the first day of Chauvin's long-awaited criminal trial. The legal wrangling comes 10 months after Floyd's death launched a summer of protest, unrest and a societal reckoning with America's past and present of anti-Black racism and aggressive policing.
Chauvin, 45, has pleaded not guilty to second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter charges.
Three witnesses, including a 911 dispatcher and two bystanders, also took the stand for the prosecution on Monday to lay the groundwork for Floyd's final moments. The witness testimony phase of the trial is expected to be take about a month.
The bystander video of Floyd's final moments, which shocked the nation last year, was also played for jurors in its entirety. Blackwell emphasized that Chauvin was on Floyd's neck for 9 minutes and 29 seconds -- an update on the initially reported 8 minutes and 46 seconds.
Former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on George Floyd's head and neck for 4 minutes and 45 seconds as Floyd cried out for help, stayed on his neck as Floyd flailed and had seizures for 53 seconds, and then remained on a non-responsive Floyd for another 3 minutes and 51 seconds, prosecutors said during opening statements in Chauvin's criminal trial on Monday.
"Mr. Derek Chauvin betrayed this badge when he used excessive and unreasonable force upon the body of Mr. George Floyd," prosecuting attorney Jerry Blackwell said. "That he put his knees upon his neck and his back, grinding and crushing him until the very breath -- no, ladies and gentlemen -- until the very life was squeezed out of him."
The opening statements from Blackwell, as well as a rebuttal from Chauvin's defense team, highlighted the first day of Chauvin's long-awaited criminal trial. The legal wrangling comes 10 months after Floyd's death launched a summer of protest, unrest and a societal reckoning with America's past and present of anti-Black racism and aggressive policing.
Chauvin, 45, has pleaded not guilty to second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter charges.
Three witnesses, including a 911 dispatcher and two bystanders, also took the stand for the prosecution on Monday to lay the groundwork for Floyd's final moments. The witness testimony phase of the trial is expected to be take about a month.
The bystander video of Floyd's final moments, which shocked the nation last year, was also played for jurors in its entirety. Blackwell emphasized that Chauvin was on Floyd's neck for 9 minutes and 29 seconds -- an update on the initially reported 8 minutes and 46 seconds.
In response, attorney Eric Nelson focused the defense's opening statement on Floyd's use of fentanyl and methamphetamine and his resistance to the arresting officers.
Nelson also sought to establish doubt as to the precise cause of Floyd's death, saying it was not Chauvin's knee, but a combination of drug use and preexisting health problems. And he defended Chauvin's actions as being within proper training.
"You will learn that Derek Chauvin did exactly what he had been trained to do over the course of his 19-year career," Nelson said. "The use of force is not attractive, but it is a necessary component of policing."
In a first for Minnesota, the trial will be broadcast live in its entirety, giving the public a rare peek into the most important case of the Black Lives Matter era.
In this image from video, defense attorney Eric Nelson, left, and former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin listen prior to opening statements on Monday, March 29, 2021.
On Monday morning, Floyd's family members and several attorneys knelt for 8 minutes and 46 seconds outside the courthouse to commemorate the time Chauvin was originally reported to have stayed on Floyd's head and neck.
"Today starts a landmark trial that will be a referendum on how far America has come in its quest for equality and justice for all," said Floyd civil attorney Benjamin Crump.
The trial is being held at a heavily fortified Hennepin County courthouse in downtown Minneapolis, surrounded by fencing and law enforcement. Due to Covid-19 precautions, plexiglass barriers have been set up inside the courtroom and witnesses and attorneys are required to wear masks when not speaking.
Source: CNN
BDST: 1240 HRS, MAR 30, 2021
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