New police body-cam footage of the arrest of George Floyd has been released as part of the trial of the officer accused of his murder.
Derek Chauvin, 45, is on trial in Minneapolis for causing the death of George Floyd after kneeling on his neck for 9 minutes during which Floyd stopped breathing. He was pronounced dead shortly afterwards.
In total, Chauvin is charged with third-degree murder, second-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter.
The body-cam footage is from other officers who were present at the scene, Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao. All three have also been charged with various crimes and will stand trial at a later date. Chauvin's own body camera fell to the ground during the struggle with Floyd and did not capture his point of view.
In the footage, Floyd can be seen pleading for his life. He had been arrested after allegedly trying to pass a counterfeit $20 note at a store.
A court has been shown new police bodycam footage of George Floyd pleading with officers during his arrest, saying: "I'm not a bad guy"https://t.co/nFP6CpM2a6 pic.twitter.com/1TuWn3XJLW
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) April 1, 2021
Prosecutors in the Derek Chauvin case showed nearly 20 minutes of body cam footage of George Floyd's detainment from Thomas Lane, one of the former Minneapolis police officers involved in Floyd's fatal arrest (WARNING: DISTURBING VIDEO) https://t.co/KbiO4Auqxh pic.twitter.com/3XBTgzaEhG
— CBS News (@CBSNews) March 31, 2021
In the video, Floyd can be heard saying:
"Please don't shoot me, please, man… I just lost my mom. I'm not a bad guy, man."
He is then heard saying:
"I love you mama. I can't breathe."
It is thought that as many as 70 people who have died in US police custody have stated they can't breathe in the moments before their deaths, that's according to the New York Times.
The prosecuting lawyer in the trial said in court:
"[Chauvin] betrayed this badge when he used excessive and unreasonable force upon the body of Mr. George Floyd."
He added:
"You will learn what happened in those nine minutes and 29 seconds when Derek Chauvin was applying that excessive force to the body of George Floyd. You will hear his voice get heavier, you will hear his words get further and further apart, you will hear his respiration get shallower and shallower, until it finally stops… You will learn that use of excessive and unreasonable force against a citizen is an assault. We are going to show you that putting knees on somebody's neck, somebody's back, was a dangerous activity, and he did it without consideration for the impact it would have on Floyd's life."
The death of George Floyd sparked the worst civil disturbances in the United States since at least the 1960s, with protesters demanding an end to racism and police brutality.
[h/t: I heart Intelligence]
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