Derek Chauvin takes the fifth, the evidence ends, and includes the following in the trial of George Floyd’s death

Derek Chauvin takes the fifth, the evidence ends, and includes the following in the trial of George Floyd’s death

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Chauvin told the judge – before the jury returned to the courtroom – that it was his decision and his decision alone. It was one of the rare times the audience heard from the ex-policeman, who showed no emotion when he scribbled on a notebook during almost three weeks of testimony.

‘If you were to try to think of all the different ways he could answer the jury’s question … Why did you not just get off George Floyd’s neck? Why did you not help? “Laura Coates, senior legal analyst at CNN, said of the defendant.

‘Remember, all his potential reactions will actually be the opposite of the evidence they’ve seen – from law enforcement experts, from his own police chief, from experts talking about the idea that they should provide assistance, even if someone is in your custody. ‘

Coates nevertheless added that Chauvin ‘was essentially his last and best and perhaps only hope’ to confront the ‘mountain of evidence’ against him.

“To offer an explanation, if not, a justification for what he did, which may be enough to plant some – not only a seed with reasonable doubt in a juror – but also a seed of empathy, she said.

After Chauvin made the fifth appeal, the defense confirmed its case in the close trial. The jury will be sequestered during discussions next week.

Judge Peter Cahill told the jury it was up to them "how long you deliberate."

“If I were you, I would have long planned and briefly hoped,” Judge Peter Cahill told jurors. “It’s basically up to the jury how long you have to deliberate, how long you have to come to a unanimous decision on any case.”

Chauvin, 45, pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree manslaughter, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.

If convicted, Chauvin 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 murder. The charges must be considered separately so that Chauvin can be convicted of all, some or not.

Here are highlights from the last week of testimony:

Pulmonologist takes the position a second time

Dr Martin Tobin, a pulmonologist who testified last week, returned Thursday for the prosecution in a brief rebuttal against an expert in the defense.
The state tried to challenge the testimony of a forensic pathologist who told the jury on Wednesday that Floyd’s cause of death was ‘indefinite’. The underlying heart issues of Floyd were the main causes, the pathologist said.

Dr. David Fowler, who retired at the end of 2019 as Maryland’s chief medical examiner, has filed a new argument for the defense: carbon monoxide from the group’s outlet may have contributed to Floyd’s death. Fowler admitted that no data or test results could confirm his backup.

Tobin, in a brief refusal, told the jury the carbon monoxide theory was proven wrong by another blood test that showed Floyd’s oxygen saturation in blood was 98%. This means that its carbon monoxide level can be at most 2% – within the normal range.

Defense proposes a three-pronged legal strategy

The defense’s turn before the jury came on Tuesday when the prosecution calmed down after calling 38 witnesses over 11 days.
The state maintained that Chauvin was using excessive and unreasonable force when he knelt on Floyd’s neck and back for nine minutes and 29 seconds last year. The prosecution relied heavily on several videos of Chauvin’s actions, analysis by police experts and medical evidence that determined that Floyd had died of self-control.
The defense of Derek Chauvin uses these three arguments to get acquittal in the death of George Floyd
The defense offered seven witnesses to advance its three-pronged officer clean-up strategy: Floyd died of drug and health problems; Chauvin’s use of force was ugly, but appropriate; and a hostile crowd of bystanders distracted the former officer’s attention.

At the heart of attorney Eric Nelson’s case is the argument that medical reasons, not Chauvin’s actions, caused Floyd’s death that night. In other words, Floyd’s use of methamphetamine and fentanyl, his initial resistance to officers and existing heart problems all conspired to kill him.

“Their goal was to throw a lot of arguments there and hope the jurors find appeal, but I think it’s just too much to overcome with the video,” said CNN’s legal analyst Jennifer Rodgers. “In my opinion, their witnesses were not as strong as the prosecution. The cross-examination was very effective.”

Fowler testified that a sudden heart issue – not police control – killed Floyd.

Dr David Fowler testified that it was not the police restriction that killed George Floyd.

“In my opinion, Mr. Floyd had a sudden cardiac arrhythmia or arrhythmia due to his atherosclerosis and hypertensive heart disease … during his restraint and subdual by the police,” the forensic pathologist told the jury.

According to Fowler, Floyd narrowed coronary arteries, known as atherosclerosis. His heart is enlarged due to his high blood pressure, or high blood pressure.

Fowler also testified that the use of Floyd’s fentanyl and methamphetamine, exposure to the group’s outlet and a tumor known as a paraganglioma, also contributed to this.

Andrew Baker, who performed Floyd’s autopsy last May, had previously testified before the prosecution that Floyd’s death was a “murder”. The cause of death was cardiopulmonary arrest – Floyd’s heart and lungs stopped. This occurred during ‘law enforcement, self-control and neck compression’, the doctor testified.

Baker said the paraganglioma was an ‘accidental’ tumor that did not affect his death.

Four other medical experts gave a similar testimony to the state: Floyd died of cardiopulmonary arrest caused by low oxygen levels due to prone restriction and position asphyxia. A cardiologist testified that Floyd’s heart showed no evidence of injury.

But Baker told the jury that other “significant conditions” contributed to Floyd’s death, including hypertensive heart disease and his drug use. Some of Floyd’s blood vessels were severely narrowed, and Baker testified that he did not find evidence at the autopsy that could support the finding of suffocation.

The Hennepin County medical examiner said Floyd’s blood contained about 11 nanograms of fentanyl per milliliter – more than in some cases Baker had seen.

Expert: Chauvin is justified in kneeling on Floyd

Barry Brodd, a former police officer and violent expert called by the defense on Tuesday, testified that Chauvin was justified in kneeling on Floyd for more than nine minutes and did not use deadly force.

“I felt that Derek Chauvin was justified and acted with objective reasonableness, in accordance with Minneapolis police policy and current standards of law enforcement in his interactions with Mr. Floyd,” Brodd told the jury.

Brodd said he does not believe a handcuffed Floyd should be placed in the “prone control” position on the street. He suggested it was safer for the person because if they get up and fall, they can hurt their face.

“It does not hurt,” Brodd said. “You put the suspect in a position where it’s safe for you, the officer, safe for them, the suspect, and you make minimal effort to keep them on the ground.”

Brodd’s testimony was at odds with police policing experts and Medaria Arradondo, Minneapolis police chief, who said Chauvin’s actions were ‘by no means, shape or form’ within the department’s policies, training, ethics or values.

At the cross, Brodd said he does not view the inclined position of control as a use of force because it does not cause pain.

Prosecutor Steve Schleicher showed Brodd a still image of Chauvin’s knee digging into Floyd’s neck. He asked if the position could cause pain. Brodd said it ‘could’, and Schleicher asked him if that meant Chauvin’s actions were a use of force.

“In this picture, it could be violent abuse,” Brodd said.

Daunte Wright called his mother before he was shot. This is what he said

Brodd admitted that he was not specifically aware of the definition of violence in Minneapolis, which defines it as a restriction that causes injury or pain. He also acknowledged that it is easy and fast to put someone in the recovery position.

At one point, Brodd said Floyd resisted a few minutes against the officers after he was taken to the ground. Prosecutors have slammed several videos of Chauvin on Floyd. Brodd then admitted that he was not sure if Floyd was struggling with the police or scratching the ground.

“I do not know what the difference is,” he said.

Other defense witnesses testified about Floyd’s drug use, especially during a previous arrest in May 2019 in which he was taking opioids when police approached him in a vehicle.
The deliberations by jurors begin next week in a metropolitan area in Minneapolis due to other deaths involved with the police, including the police shooting of Daunte Wright last weekend. Brooklyn Center Police Officer Kim Potter is charged with second-degree manslaughter in the shooting at the Black motorist after nights of protests.

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