Tense America waits for verdict on Floyd’s death
MINNEAPOLIS: Jurors met for a second day of deliberations on Tuesday in the trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer charged with murder and manslaughter after kneeling on the neck of a dying George Floyd during an arrest last May.
The 12 sequestered jurors are considering three weeks of testimony from 45 witnesses, including bystanders, police officials and medical experts, along with hours of video evidence in the most high-profile US case involving accusations of police misconduct in decades.
Chauvin, who is white, has pleaded not guilty to second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree “depraved mind” murder and second-degree manslaughter.
The jury began its deliberations on Monday after listening to closing arguments for most of the day. Jurors must reach a unanimous verdict on each charge to convict or acquit. A single hold-out would result in a mistrial, although the state could then try Chauvin again.
US President Joe Biden spoke with Floyd’s family on Monday “to check in with them and also share that the family was in his prayers”, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said.
In an arrest captured on video, Chauvin pushed his knee into the neck of Floyd, a 46-year-old handcuffed Black man, for more than nine minutes outside the grocery store where Floyd had been accused of buying cigarettes with a fake $20 bill.
Floyd’s relatives, many of them traveling from Texas, have taken turns sitting in a single chair reserved for them in the courtroom.