Jittery city waits on Floyd case judgment
Prosecution ‘defies sense’, defence talks ‘nonsense’, jury told
The jurors who sat quietly offcamera through three weeks of draining testimony in Derek Chauvin’s murder trial in George Floyd’s death moved into the spotlight today, still out of sight but now in control of verdicts awaited by a skittish city.
The jury of six whites and six who are Black or multiracial was set for its first full of deliberations. The jury, anonymous by order of the judge and sequestered now until they reach a verdict, spent just a few hours on their task yesterday after the day was mostly consumed by closing arguments in which prosecutors argued that Chauvin squeezed the life out of Floyd last May in a way even a child knew was wrong.
The defence contended that the now-fired officer acted reasonably and that Floyd, 46, died of a heart condition and illegal drug use.
Chauvin, 45, is charged with second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter, all of which require the jury to conclude his actions were a “substantial causal factor” in the death and that his use of force was unreasonable.
The most serious charge carries up to 40 years in prison.
“Use your common sense. Believe your eyes. What you saw, you saw,” prosecutor Steve Schleicher said in closing arguments, referring to the bystander video of Floyd pinned to the pavement with Chauvin’s knee on, or close to, his neck for up to nine minutes, 29 seconds, as onlookers yelled at the officer to get off.
Chauvin attorney Eric Nelson countered by arguing that Chauvin did what any reasonable officer would have done after finding himself in a “dynamic” and “fluid” situation involving a large man struggling with three officers.
As Nelson spoke, the now-fired Chauvin removed his Covid-19 mask in front of the jury for one of the few times in court.
With the case drawing to a close, some stores were boarded up in Minneapolis. The courthouse was ringed with concrete barriers and razor wire, and National Guard troops were on patrol. Floyd’s death set off protests last spring in the city and across the US. Some turned violent.
The city has also been on edge over the deadly police shooting of a 20-year-old Black, Daunte Wright, in a nearby suburb on April 11. About 300 protesters marched outside the courthouse shortly after the jury got the case, lining up behind a banner reading, “Justice 4 George Floyd & all stolen lives. The world is watching.”
Prosecutor Jerry Blackwell had the final word yesterday, offering the state’s rebuttal argument. The prosecutor, who is Black, said the questions about the use of force and cause of death are “so simple that a child can understand it”.
“In fact, a child did understand it,
when the 9-year-old girl said, ‘Get off of him’,” Blackwell said, referring to a young witness. “That’s how simple it was. ‘ Get off of him.’ Common sense.”
Nelson noted that officers who first went to the corner store where Floyd allegedly passed a counterfeit $20 bill were struggling with him when Chauvin arrived. The defence attorney said the first two officers there were rookies and police had been told Floyd might be on drugs.
“A reasonable police officer understands the intensity of the struggle,” Nelson said, noting Chauvin’s body camera and badge were knocked off his chest.
Nelson also showed the jury pictures of pills found in Floyd’s SUV and pill remnants discovered in the squad car. Fentanyl and methamphetamine were found in Floyd’s system.
The defence attorney said the failure of the prosecution to accept medical problems or drugs played a role “defies medical science and it defies common sense and reason”.
During the prosecution’s argument, Schleicher replayed portions of the bystander video and other footage as he dismissed defence theories about the death as “nonsense”. He said Chauvin killed Floyd by constricting his breathing.
Schleicher rejected the overdose argument, as well as the idea police were distracted by hostile onlookers, that Floyd had “superhuman” strength from a state of agitation known as excited delirium, and that he suffered possible carbon monoxide poisoning from vehicle exhaust.
The prosecutor sarcastically referred to the idea heart disease killed Floyd as an “amazing coincidence”.