Derek Chauvin Trial Live Updates: Justice Dept. Will Investigate the Minneapolis Police
Public gatherings were largely celebratory after Derek Chauvin was convicted of murdering George Floyd, but activists said that systemic policing problems must be addressed.
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Demonstrators in Brooklyn on Tuesday night after the former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of murdering George Floyd.Credit...Hilary Swift for The New York Times
Activists marched outside the Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis on Tuesday after the jury found Derek Chauvin guilty on all three charges he faced.Credit...Joshua Rashaad McFadden for The New York Times
The Justice Department will investigate the policies and operations of the Minneapolis Police Department, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced on Wednesday, a day after the former officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of murder in the death of George Floyd in a rare rebuke of police violence.
“The Justice Department has opened a civil investigation to determine whether the Minneapolis Police Department engages in a pattern or practice of unconstitutional or unlawful policing,” Mr. Garland said in brief remarks at the Justice Department.
So-called pattern-or-practice investigations are often the precursors to consent decrees, court-approved deals between the Justice Department and local governments that create and enforce a road map for training and operational changes.
Mr. Garland’s announcement came a day after the conviction of Mr. Chauvin, who was fired by the Minneapolis Police Department last year after gruesome video of him kneeling on Mr. Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes sparked protests across the nation.
The inquiry into the department is separate from the existing Justice Department investigation into whether Mr. Chauvin violated Mr. Floyd’s civil rights. It will be led by lawyers and staff in the Justice Department’s civil rights division and the U.S. attorney’s office in Minnesota.
Investigators will seek to determine whether the Minneapolis Police Department engages in a pattern or practice of using excessive force, including during protests; whether it engages in discriminatory conduct; and whether its treatment of those with behavioral health disabilities is unlawful. They will also review the department's policies, training, supervision and use-of-force investigations, and whether its current systems of accountability are effective at ensuring that police officers act lawfully.
If the investigators find that the police department has engaged in unlawful policing, Mr. Garland said the Justice Department would issue a public report. It also has the option to bring a civil suit against the department and enter into a settlement agreement, or consent decree, to ensure that prompt and effective action is taken bring the department’s practices into compliance with the law.
On Friday, Mr. Garland restored the robust use of consent decrees, rescinding a Trump administration policy that largely curbed their use. The Obama administration had repeatedly used the tool to address police misconduct. The restoration of consent decrees was one of the Biden administration’s first significant moves to hold police forces accountable in cases where they are found to have violated federal laws.
“Most of our nation’s law enforcement officers do their difficult jobs honorably and lawfully. I strongly believe that good officers do not want to work in systems that allow bad practices,” Mr. Garland said.
The challenges that the nation faces in addressing systemic racial inequities “are deeply woven into our history,” Mr. Garland said, adding that it would take time and effort by all to build “trust between community and law enforcement.”
In Harlem, Chauvin Verdict Represents ‘a Little Bit of Justice’
The final verdict in the murder trial of Derek Chauvin was broadcast live across the country. Our camera captured reaction from New York.
“Well, we’re waiting for the verdict I’m just hoping that, you know, the verdict is just. We get the wrong side of the verdict most of the time. It’s sad, but you become numb to it. Looks like they’re about to say it.” “Verdict, Count 1: guilty.” “But we have to see all the counts.” “... find the defendant guilty ...” “OK. They made sure he got all of them.” “Are these your true and correct verdicts?” “Yes.” “Finally. Finally. That’s good.” “I’m glad he’s guilty, basically. Saving, I guess, a lot of trouble on tonight’s news. A lot of fires. A lot of shootings.” “Hey, a little bit of justice. That’s all I can say. One down, a million to go.”
The final verdict in the murder trial of Derek Chauvin was broadcast live across the country. Our camera captured reaction from New York.CreditCredit...Yousur Al-Hlou
At the AK Barber Shop in Harlem, customers waited with anticipation as Judge Peter A. Cahill announced the jury’s verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial.
“Well, we’re waiting for the verdict I’m just hoping that, you know, the verdict is just,” said Brandon Baez, a customer who sat in the barbershop as electric trimmers buzzed in the background.
“We get the wrong side of the verdict most of the time,” he said. “It’s sad, but you become numb to it.”
Protests in Columbus After a Teenage Girl Is Killed by the Police
Hours after a jury reached a guilty verdict in the murder trial of the former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, protesters took to the streets in Columbus, Ohio, after a teenage girl, Ma’Khia Bryant, was fatally shot by an officer.
“Black women matter — Black women matter. Black girls matter — Black girls matter.” “Say her name — Ma’Khia Bryant. Say her name — Ma’Khia Bryant. Say her name — Ma’Khia Bryant. Say her name — Ma’Khia Bryant. Say her name — Ma’Khia Bryant. Say her name — Ma’Khia Bryant. Say her name — Ma’Khia Bryant. Say her name — Ma’Khia Bryant.” [cars honking]
Hours after a jury reached a guilty verdict in the murder trial of the former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, protesters took to the streets in Columbus, Ohio, after a teenage girl, Ma’Khia Bryant, was fatally shot by an officer.CreditCredit...Etienne Laurent/EPA, via Shutterstock
A teenage girl who the police say threatened two girls with a knife was fatally shot by an officer in Columbus, Ohio, on Tuesday afternoon, shortly before a judge read the guilty verdict in the murder trial of the former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin in last year’s killing of George Floyd.
The girl’s death cast an immediate pall over public expressions that justice had been served in Mr. Floyd’s case and touched off protests in Ohio’s capital city.
At a news conference on Tuesday night, the Columbus Division of Police released body camera footage from the officer, who officials said had been responding to a 911 call about an attempted stabbing around 4:45 p.m. in the southeastern part of the city.
Officials said the video showed the teenager lunging at two other females with a knife as the officer arrived at the driveway of a residence. The officer then fired several times — four shots could be heard in the video — at the girl. She collapsed to the ground next to a car that had been parked in the driveway, where the body camera footage showed a knife on the ground.
The girl who was killed was identified as Ma’Khia Bryant, 16, by a spokeswoman for Franklin County Children’s Services, who said in an email on Tuesday night that Ma’Khia had been in foster care.
“No matter what the circumstances, that family is in agony and they are in my prayers,” Ned Pettus Jr., the public safety director for the city of Columbus, said during the news conference. “They deserve answers. Our city deserves answers. I want answers, but fast, quick answers cannot come at the cost of accurate answers.”
People gathered in Minneapolis, Los Angeles, New York, Washington and other cities on Tuesday in response to Derek Chauvin being found guilty in the murder ofGeorge Floyd. Follow our visual coverage here.
MinneapolisVictor J. Blue for The New York Times
MinneapolisAmr Alfiky/The New York Times
Los AngelesAllison Zaucha for The New York Times
BrooklynGabriela Bhaskar for The New York Times
MinneapolisAmr Alfiky/The New York Times
Washington, D.CKenny Holston for The New York Times
From left: The former Minneapolis police officers Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane.Credit...Hennepin County Jail, via Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
Now that the former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has been found guilty in the murder of George Floyd, attention is turning to the coming trial of the other three officers who were involved in the arrest. All three were fired the day after Mr. Floyd’s death, and they are expected to be tried jointly beginning in August.
On June 3, Hennepin County prosecutors charged Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter.
Mr. Kueng and Mr. Lane, both newly trained officers, arrived at the scene first and approached Mr. Floyd’s car. Mr. Lane drew his handgun and pointed it at Mr. Floyd through an open window, putting the gun back in his holster after Mr. Floyd put his hands on the steering wheel.
Mr. Thao and Mr. Chauvin arrived later, when the first two officers were trying to get Mr. Floyd into the squad car. Once Mr. Floyd was on the ground, Mr. Lane held his legs, and Mr. Kueng held his back. Mr. Thao stood nearby and interacted with bystanders.
Mr. Lane and Mr. Kueng were both in their first week on the job as full officers. Mr. Kueng, who was 26 at the time, was the youngest and least experienced officer at the scene. It was his third shift as a full officer. He was trained largely by Mr. Chauvin. Neither Mr. Kueng nor Mr. Lane had prior misconduct complaints filed against them, according to the Minneapolis Police Department.
Mr. Thao, who was 34 at the time of Mr. Floyd’s arrest, had been with the Minneapolis Police Department for nine years. He faced six misconduct complaints in his career with the department. He also was the subject of a lawsuit that claimed that he and another officer punched, kicked and kneed a Black man, leaving him with broken teeth and bruises. A lawyer involved in the case said the city settled the case by agreeing to pay $25,000.
A march in Atlanta after Derek Chauvin’s verdict was announced on Tuesday.Credit...Megan Varner/Getty Images
The widespread celebration that followed the conviction of a former Minneapolis police officer for the murder of George Floyd left a lingering question for many: Would the verdict have any lasting impact on policing in America?
Derek Chauvin’s conviction on all counts — second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter — meant that the 45-year-old former officer, a nearly 20-year veteran of the Minneapolis police force, could face years in prison for the brutal encounter that ended Mr. Floyd’s life.
President Biden called the verdict “too rare” and said that it should serve as a catalyst for reforms in law enforcement. In the wake of the jury’s decision, there are broad calls in many cities for recalibrating the relationship between the police and the public.
The verdict brought some sense of closure in the death of Mr. Floyd, who died on May 25, particularly to those who were close to him. But on the larger issue of police killings and use of force around the country, there were challenges ahead. More than three people a day were killed at the hands of law enforcement during Mr. Chauvin’s trial.
Otis Moss III, pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, said the country has yet to reckon with the systemic problems that Black activists have pointed to for decades.
“Reckoning suggests that we are truly struggling with how to reimagine everything from criminal justice to food deserts to health disparities — we are not doing that,” he said. The verdict, he said, “is addressing a symptom, but we have not yet dealt with the disease.”
While some state legislatures have passed law enforcement reform bills, including bans on no-knock warrants and chokeholds, others have taken the opposite approach. Several states are considering bills that could effectively criminalize public protests.
Officials and law enforcement agencies across the country had braced for mass protests and possible civil unrest if the jury had found Mr. Chauvin not guilty of murder.
But after Mr. Chauvin was escorted from the courtroom in handcuffs, a crowd outside the Hennepin County courthouse in Minneapolis erupted in cheers. Most public gatherings nationwide were largely celebratory, with some activists Tuesday night calling for continued public attention on other recent police shootings.
“That blue wall of silence may be finally cracking,” said Juan Carmona, the head of the social studies department at Donna High School in the border town of Donna. “Police officers are like anybody else, and they’re seeing what’s happening in the country.”
Darnella Frazier, wearing blue pants at right, recorded the widely seen video of George Floyd’s arrest.Credit...Still image, via Court TV
The Minneapolis Police Department’s initial inaccurate and misleading description of George Floyd’s death last May “might have become the official account” of what took place, had it not been for video taken by a teenage bystander, Keith Boykin, a CNN commentator, wrote on Twitter.
The video, taken by Darnella Frazier, emerged the night of Mr. Floyd’s death and drove much of the public’s understanding of what took place. Chief Medaria Arradondo of the police department testified at Mr. Chauvin’s trial that within hours of Mr. Floyd’s death he received a text from a local resident telling him about the video.
Later, Chief Arradondo, who testified as a witness for the prosecution at Mr. Chauvin’s trial, praised Ms. Frazier for her actions.
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From Rodney King to George Floyd: Reliving the Scars of Police Violence
The murder trial of Derek Chauvin is at the center of a national reckoning on race and policing. But cycles of protests over systemic racism and policing are not new. We watched the trial with the families of Rodney King, Oscar Grant and Stephon Clark to see this moment in history through their eyes.
“May it please the court. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, good morning. The video evidence, I think, will be very helpful and meaningful to you because you can see it for yourself without lawyer talk, lawyer spin, lawyer anything. You can see it for yourself.” “Please. Please. I can’t breathe. Please, man. Please somebody help me. Please. I’m about to die in this thing.” “Oh my God.” “What did he say?” “He said, I’m about to die. Oh my God.” “While watching the George Floyd trial, I noticed the differences and the importance of footage.” “This corner —” “When Stephon was murdered, we only had the officers’ footage. We only had their point of view.” “Hey, show your hands.” “You know, when my son was killed being on the platform, there was several bystanders that filmed. And had it not been for the cameras, we wouldn’t even be here today because they would have probably said it was justified.” “Bro, with your feet on his head, man. You knee on his neck.” “He’s pushing harder.” “Yeah.” “I cannot breathe.” “A little bit more. Right here.” “I don’t watch the footage of my dad’s incident because it’s torture.” “You see the officers giving a trove of blows to his body?” “Yes.” “To his arms, to his torso, to his legs.” “Here it is 30 years later, nothing has changed.” “Now who are you going to believe? The defendants or your own eyes?” “I am watching the George Floyd case with my best friend, Tiffany, at her home.” “Oh my gosh.” “Wow.” “And he’s still on his neck.” “Today was the first time I watched the entire video of George Floyd, and it definitely made me think about my dad begging for his life screaming.” “Check his pulse. Check his pulse.” “His daughter was the same age I was when my dad was beaten.” “My name is Lora Dene King. I’m the middle child of Rodney Glen King.” “The world saw the videotape.” “We thought the video showed excessive force and unnecessary force.” “With that videotape, if they had two eyes and they weren’t blind, you could see that it was excessive force.” “The defense tried to dilute the impact of the tape by dissecting it, frame by frame, in an effort to show that King was a threat to the officers.” “He kind of gave out like a bear-like yell, like a wounded animal. If he had grabbed my officer, it would have been a death grip. If he had grabbed the weapon, he would have had numerous targets.” “He didn’t grab anybody during these events, did he?” “No sir, he did not.” “He couldn’t walk. He had 50 broken bones. His skull was permanently fractured. He had permanent brain damage. My dad was never the same after that. You know, and everybody just considered him to be normal. I think if that happened to anybody, they wouldn’t be normal ever again.” “This doesn’t just affect the person it happened to. It also affects all those people who are out there watching it. They’re all affected forever.” “I was desperate to help.” “I was just kind of emotional, and I went to the African-American that was standing there on the curb. And I was just like, they’re not going to help them.” “Oh my God.” “This man, he witnessed another African-American man getting his life taken. The nine-year-old speaker on the trial.” “Good morning, [inaudible].” “Good morning.” “Which one is you?” “Just so happened to be walking down the street. She will never forget that for the rest of her life.” “You ultimately ended up posting your video to social media, right?” “Correct.” “And it went viral?” “Correct.” “It changed your life, right?” “The girl who filmed George Floyd, the fact that there was nothing she can do to save his life.” “It’s been nights, I stayed up apologizing and apologizing to George Floyd for not doing more.” “That’s something that will haunt her like George Holliday, who captured my dad’s video.” “Without George Holliday, these four officers might not be on trial.” “He just wanted to test this new camera he had. Like, oh let me take — he stood there shaking, terrified. And he still suffers to this day because that was the right thing to do.” “What could he have done to deserve that?” “If I was to see George Floyd’s daughter today, I wish there was something I can say. But it’s not easy. It’s not easy at all. Because I’m sure she’s watched that videotape. And that’s something that carries in your mental every everyday, just like my dad’s video tape.” “For the jury, a difficult decision ahead, knowing that to acquit the four officers could ignite this city.” “Not guilty of —” Chanting: “No justice, no peace. No justice, no peace.” “And damage to the city of Los Angeles running into billions of dollars.” “That’s what I’m saying. The police, they don’t pay a cent for this trial. So my mother and I, we was watching the George Floyd’s trial. And it brought back so many memories of my son Oscar’s case. Oscar’s last picture in his cellphone was of the officer who shot him.” “My name is Wanda Johnson. I’m the mother of Oscar Grant.” “Grant was shot once in the back as he lay face down on the train station’s platform.” “He was unarmed.” “The 27-year-old officer has said he thought he had drawn his Taser gun —” “— but accidentally pulled out his handgun instead.” “And the incident was captured on cellphone video.” “Video speaks for themselves. And the jury will see that and make the correct decision.” “We knew that we would have a very hard time winning in the court systems because the judicial system was not made for everyone in the society.” “As the situation went on, the crowd began to grow and grow.” “Oh my goodness, the same playbook that they used for what happened with Oscar, they used the same thing for George Floyd. Oh, there was a crowd of angry mob people.” “They were behind them. There were people across the street, people yelling.” “We don’t know if they were going to attack us. I thought about the young man testifying in George Floyd’s case.” “You grew angrier and angrier.” “Calling the police on the police.” “911, what’s the address of the emergency?” “How do you have somebody investigate those that they work with? Of course you’re going to find that they’re going to believe the people that they work with quicker than they will believe the citizens who are filing the complaint.” “Would you like to speak with those sergeants?” “Yeah, I’d like to. He was unresponsive. He wasn’t resisting arrest or any of this.” “OK, one second.” “Murderers, bro. Y’all are just murderers, bro.” “You know, when we was going to jury trial for Oscar, they would ask questions like, ‘Do you know anybody who went to jail? Do you know anybody who had an encounter with the police?’ And as soon as the person said that, they would strike them from being a juror, right? Having a jury that consists of different backgrounds, it could help with the decision-making of innocent or guilty.” “The 27-year-old officer —” “— pleaded not guilty to the murder charge.” “His trial had been moved to Los Angeles over concerns of racial tension and intense media scrutiny.” “Everybody, let’s just pray for one minute.” “Father God, we come to you and your son named Jesus Christ. Father, we ask the people that see this —” “Every time I come to my mom’s house, I’m reminded that my son was killed here.” “My name is Sequette Clark. I’m the mother of Stephon Clark.” “22-year-old Stephon Clark was fatally shot while running from police.” “Clark was see evading authorities after allegedly smashing a car window.” “He was shot eight times in his grandmother’s backyard.” “Police apparently thinking he was holding a gun, now say it was a cellphone.” “Out of fear for their own lives, they fired their service weapon.” “And following the incident, officers manually muted their body cameras at times.” “Move over this way.” “As we watched the George Floyd trial, I invited particular members of my family because you can’t address something in the community or the city or the nation until you address it at home with the family.” “When Mr. Floyd was in distress, Mr. Chauvin wouldn’t help him, didn’t help him.” “So that’s just how they left my boy out there. They handcuffed him after he was dead.” “Excessive force.” “Excessive force and lethal force after the fact of death. I felt saddened, heavy, drained. I felt as if I was a slave 400 years ago. Just hearing how he was dead, seeing how he was dead. And then to turn around and hear the defense’s attempt to bring up the fact that we should not focus on the —” “— 9 minutes and 29 seconds —” “— that it took to kill George Floyd. But we should focus on what went on ahead of that. Anything that does not deal directly with the murder of George Floyd is irrelevant in my opinion.” “He’s 6 to 6 and a half feet tall. You did not know that he had taken heroin. Mr. Floyd did use a counterfeit $20 bill to purchase a pack of cigarettes. Mr. Floyd put drugs in his mouth.” “Poppa’s already dead. George Floyd is already dead.” “That’s right. That’s right.” “So now you’re resurrecting him just to kill him all over again.” “Basically.” “Defame him in order to justify the wrongdoing of your officers, reminded me exactly of what the district attorney did to Stephon.” “The cellphone examination revealed a domestic violence incident that happened with the mother of his children. Texts and phone calls showing that he was seeking drugs and a photograph of his hand holding 10 Xanax pills.” “What was on his cellphone has zero to do with the actions of the police officers at the time of his homicide. I feel like it’s a bittersweet thing that’s happening watching the George Floyd trial. Because I’m optimistic that this is a piece of justice for the death of my son.” “We might not be here. They’re going to get him. They’re going to get him.” “Was a crime committed? The answer to that question is no. And as a result, we will not charge these officers with any criminal liability related to the shooting death or the use of force of Stephon Clark.” “April 14, 1991: King fights emotional and physical scars. So this is basically a photo album book of my dad’s newspaper articles since he’s been in the news. Years and years and years. You throw someone to the wolves and you expect them to be normal. You know, there’s no such thing as normal after that. And then, can you imagine how many Rodney Kings there is that never got videotaped? There’s plenty of them.” “I would have prayed and hoped that Oscar’s trial would have been televised because America has to really look in the mirror and say, ‘Are all people being treated equally?’” “There was excessive use of force against George Floyd —” “We’re not focused on the videotape, his toxicology, his heart condition. We’re focused on the fact that several people witnessed this man get murdered.” “You can see it with our own eyes. It’s crazy.” “People don’t realize what it does to your family. It’s bigger than just a trial and this officer. We never get to see them again. We never get to smell them again and kiss them again. Our lives are completely affected forever.”
The murder trial of Derek Chauvin is at the center of a national reckoning on race and policing. But cycles of protests over systemic racism and policing are not new. We watched the trial with the families of Rodney King, Oscar Grant and Stephon Clark to see this moment in history through their eyes.
After the guilty verdict was announced Tuesday afternoon, Mr. Boykin and others on social media recirculated the police department’s initial account of events. To many, it was further reason not to place full trust in the narratives offered by police officials, and underscored the need for independent video of police actions.
“Seriously, read it again knowing what we know,” Jake Tapper, the CNN host, wrote on Twitter.
The initial news release, posted on the police department’s website, is titled “Man Dies After Medical Incident During Police Interaction.” It said Mr. Floyd, who was not identified by name, “physically resisted officers” on the scene who had ordered him out of his vehicle. “Officers were able to get the suspect into handcuffs and noted he appeared to be suffering medical distress,” the release said.
The officers called for an ambulance and Mr. Floyd was taken to the Hennepin County Medical Center, where he died, it said.
Then, in a separate one-sentence paragraph, the department said, “At no time were weapons of any type used by anyone involved in this incident.”
State officials were investigating the episode and body cameras had been activated, the release said. It also noted, “No officers were injured in the incident.”
Ms. Frazier’s video helped shatter that narrative, and showed Mr. Chauvin kneeling on Mr. Floyd’s neck for several minutes.
Police officials from major cities across the country, who usually support each other especially in times of crises, welcomed the verdict against a former member of their ranks.
Commissioner Dermot Shea of the New York Police Department, by far the largest in the country, said on Twitter, “Justice has been served.” Superintendent Shaun Ferguson of the New Orleans Police Department said the verdict “is justice delivered.”
Chief Troy Finner of the Houston Police Department said, “Sometimes justice takes a little while, but it’s going to get there.” He added, “If there is anybody in the city who wants to celebrate, we are going to be there with you.” But, he said, “Do it the right way.”
In Seattle, the police department said, “Mr. Floyd’s murder was a watershed moment for this country” and added: “From that pain, though, real change has begun.”
And in Oakland, Calif., the police department called for people to be “compassionate, empathic, and forgiving.” It also said, “Together we will work towards rethinking policing in America.”
Last year, Ray Kelly, who retired in 2013 after serving 12 years as the New York City police commissioner, told The Wall Street Journal, “This is the worst act of police brutality that I’ve seen.”
A screen in Times Square showing the reaction in Minnesota after the jury found Derek Chauvin guilty of murdering George Floyd. Credit...Gabriela Bhaskar for The New York Times
Every major broadcast and cable news network — and even ESPN — broke into regular programming on Tuesday for live coverage of the verdict, ensuring that millions of Americans watched in unison as a Minnesota jury found the former police officer Derek Chauvin guilty on all charges in the death of George Floyd.
“Justice has been served,” the CNN anchor Don Lemon declared on-air shortly after the verdict, speaking alongside footage of people celebrating — and some crying in relief — outside the Minneapolis courthouse.
Mr. Lemon continued: “I’m sure people who are watching all over this country, watching all over the world, are on their devices getting messages from people, as I am, saying: ‘Thank you, Jesus, thank God. Finally, finally — justice on all counts.’”
That sense of relief was echoed by analysts on several networks, including NBC News, where the political analyst Eugene Robinson told viewers that he had “exhaled for the first time in more than an hour” after learning of the verdict.
“One of my first thoughts was, you know, it shouldn’t have been this hard, right?” Mr. Robinson said. “We haven’t reached our destination on the racial reckoning that we need to have in this country. But I think this will be seen as a step forward, as opposed to what it potentially could have been seen as, which would have been a giant step back.”
On Fox News, the anchor Jeanine Pirro, a former New York State judge, said immediately after the jury found Mr. Chauvin guilty: “Make no mistake, the facts are solid on this verdict. This verdict will be upheld on appeal.” She took pains to frame the outcome of the trial as a sign “that the American justice system works.”
Fox News covered the news on its usual 5 p.m. talk show, “The Five,” where the co-host Juan Williams called the day “very emotional.”
“It would have been so upsetting, it would have been a kick in the stomach,” he told viewers, “if in this most extreme situation, where everybody can see what happened, if the jury had somehow said, ‘Let’s split the verdict.’”
His co-host Greg Gutfeld offered a more disjointed take, claiming it was a “myth” that the trial had divided the nation and saying he was satisfied with the verdict because it might prevent what he characterized as violent protests.
“I’m glad that he was found guilty on all charges, even if he might not be guilty of all charges,” Mr. Gutfeld said.
He was quickly interrupted by Ms. Pirro, who had been muttering in disapproving tones as Mr. Gutfeld was speaking. Ms. Pirro scolded Mr. Gutfeld for his views, saying the verdict was a result of clear facts presented by prosecutors. “That courtroom is a place where the evidence is brought in and it is pristine in the way it’s handled,” she said.
At 8 p.m., Tucker Carlson opened his highly rated Fox News show by questioning how the jury had reached its verdict and blasting the Black Lives Matter movement.
“So we must stop this current insanity,” he said. “It’s an attack on civilization. At stake is far more than the future of Derek Chauvin or the memory of George Floyd. At stake is America.” He continued: “So before we consider the details of today’s verdict, a bigger question. One we should all think about: Can we trust the way this decision was made?”
His first guest, The New York Post columnist Miranda Devine, who described President Trump as “an invincible hero” in an October column, claimed there was an “enormous amount of pressure” on the jury. As she spoke, a caption appeared onscreen: “BLATANT INTIMIDATION DURING DEREK CHAUVIN TRIAL.”
Women embraced outside the Hennepin County Government Center after the guilty verdicts were announced.Credit...Amr Alfiky/The New York Times
The jury in the trial of Derek Chauvin found him guilty on all three charges he faced: second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
How much prison time Mr. Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer accused of killing George Floyd, will have to serve will not be decided until several weeks from now, after a pre-sentencing report about Mr. Chauvin’s background is produced. Judge Peter A. Cahill will also have to determine whether there were special circumstances of the crime that would justify a lengthier sentence than the prison terms laid out by Minnesota’s sentencing guidelines.
Because Mr. Chauvin has no criminal history, the sentencing guidelines for each of the murder charges is 12.5 years. But the maximum sentences for each charge differ: Second-degree murder could mean as long as 40 years in prison, while the maximum for third-degree murder is 25 years.
Mr. Chauvin is also charged with second-degree manslaughter, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years, but under the guidelines he would most likely be sentenced to four years.
Before Mr. Chauvin was convicted, the state asked for a lengthier sentence should he be convicted of any of the charges — what is known as an “upward sentencing departure” — citing aggravating factors including, the state has said in court filings, that the killing of Mr. Floyd happened in the presence of children, that Mr. Floyd was treated with “particular cruelty” by Mr. Chauvin, and that Mr. Chauvin, as a police officer, “abused his position of authority.”
Mr. Chauvin had the option of having the jury rule on the aggravating factors or putting it in the hands of Judge Cahill. At the end of closing arguments on Monday, Mr. Chauvin waived his right to have the jury decide, putting the decision on sentencing solely in the hands of Judge Cahill.
‘He Was Suffering’: Teenager Who Filmed Floyd’s Arrest Testifies at Trial
Darnella Frazier, who was 17 years old when she filmed video of George Floyd’s arrest, testified during the murder trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer charged in Mr. Floyd’s death.
“And is this as you are approaching Cup Foods on May 25?” “Yes.” “Now see, there, your cousin goes into the store. Why did she go into the store, and then you turned around and then came back toward the squad cars?” “I wanted to make sure she got in.” [inaudible] “When you walk past the squad car there, did you see anything happening there on the ground as you were walking towards Cup Foods with your cousin?” “Yes, I see a man on the ground and I see a cop kneeling down on him.” “Was there anything about the scene that you didn’t want your cousin to see?” “Yes” “And what was that?” “A man terrified, scared, begging for his life.” “Is that why you directed your cousin to going into Cup Foods?” “Yes.” “And, and then when you saw what was happening there, at the scene, what was it about the scene that caused you to come back?” “He wasn’t right. He was he was suffering. He was in pain.” “So tell the jury what you observed, what you heard when you stopped to look at what was happening there at the scene.” “I heard George Floyd saying, ‘I can’t breathe. Please get off of me. I can’t breathe.’ He he cried for his mom. He was in pain. It seemed like he knew. It seemed like he knew it was over for him. He was terrified.”
Darnella Frazier, who was 17 years old when she filmed video of George Floyd’s arrest, testified during the murder trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer charged in Mr. Floyd’s death.CreditCredit...Still image via Court TV
In the three weeks of the trial of Derek Chauvin, dozens of witnesses have testified; hours of video of George Floyd’s arrest have been played, paused and replayed; and two sides of the courtroom have presented opposing narratives to a jury tasked with determining the guilt or innocence of a former police officer charged with murder in one of the most watched trials in decades.
Through witness testimony, several distinct themes have emerged as the most crucial points of contention: whether Mr. Chauvin violated policy when he knelt on George Floyd’s neck for nine and a half minutes; what role, if any, drugs played in Mr. Floyd’s death; and what kind of impact the arrest may have had on the people who witnessed it.
The Times has reconstructed the death of George Floyd on May 25. Security footage, witness videos and official documents show how a series of actions by officers turned fatal. (This video contains scenes of graphic violence.)
It’s a Monday evening in Minneapolis. Police respond to a call about a man who allegedly used a counterfeit $20 bill to buy cigarettes. Seventeen minutes later, the man they are there to investigate lies motionless on the ground, and is pronounced dead shortly after. The man was 46-year-old George Floyd, a bouncer originally from Houston who had lost his job at a restaurant when the coronavirus pandemic hit. Crowd: “No justice, no peace.” Floyd’s death triggered major protests in Minneapolis, and sparked rage across the country. One of the officers involved, Derek Chauvin, has been arrested and charged with second-degree murder. The other three officers have been charged with aiding and abetting murder. The Times analyzed bystander videos, security camera footage and police scanner audio, spoke to witnesses and experts, and reviewed documents released by the authorities to build as comprehensive a picture as possible and better understand how George Floyd died in police custody. The events of May 25 begin here. Floyd is sitting in the driver’s seat of this blue S.U.V. Across the street is a convenience store called Cup Foods. Footage from this restaurant security camera helps us understand what happens next. Note that the timestamp on the camera is 24 minutes fast. At 7:57 p.m., two employees from Cup Foods confront Floyd and his companions about an alleged counterfeit bill he just used in their store to buy cigarettes. They demand the cigarettes back but walk away empty-handed. Four minutes later, they call the police. According to the 911 transcript, an employee says that Floyd used fake bills to buy cigarettes, and that he is “awfully drunk” and “not in control of himself.” Soon, the first police vehicle arrives on the scene. Officers Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng step out of the car and approach the blue S.U.V. Seconds later, Lane pulls his gun. We don’t know exactly why. He orders Floyd to put his hands on the wheel. Lane reholsters the gun, and after about 90 seconds of back and forth, yanks Floyd out of the S.U.V. A man is filming the confrontation from a car parked behind them. The officers cuff Floyd’s hands behind his back. And Kueng walks him to the restaurant wall. “All right, what’s your name?” From the 911 transcript and the footage, we now know three important facts: First, that the police believed they were responding to a man who was drunk and out of control. But second, even though the police were expecting this situation, we can see that Floyd has not acted violently. And third, that he seems to already be in distress. Six minutes into the arrest, the two officers move Floyd back to their vehicle. As the officers approach their car, we can see Floyd fall to the ground. According to the criminal complaints filed against the officers, Floyd says he is claustrophobic and refuses to enter the police car. During the struggle, Floyd appears to turn his head to address the officers multiple times. According to the complaints, he tells them he can’t breathe. Nine minutes into the arrest, the third and final police car arrives on the scene. It’s carrying officers Tou Thao and Derek Chauvin. Both have previous records of complaints brought against them. Thao was once sued for throwing a man to the ground and hitting him. Chauvin has been involved in three police shootings, one of them fatal. Chauvin becomes involved in the struggle to get Floyd into the car. Security camera footage from Cup Foods shows Kueng struggling with Floyd in the backseat while Thao watches. Chauvin pulls him through the back seat and onto the street. We don’t know why. Floyd is now lying on the pavement, face down. That’s when two witnesses begin filming, almost simultaneously. The footage from the first witness shows us that all four officers are now gathered around Floyd. It’s the first moment when we can clearly see that Floyd is face down on the ground, with three officers applying pressure to his neck, torso and legs. At 8:20 p.m., we hear Floyd’s voice for the first time. The video stops when Lane appears to tell the person filming to walk away. “Get off to the sidewalk, please. One side or the other, please.” The officers radio a Code 2, a call for non-emergency medical assistance, reporting an injury to Floyd’s mouth. In the background, we can hear Floyd struggling. The call is quickly upgraded to a Code 3, a call for emergency medical assistance. By now another bystander, 17-year-old Darnella Frazier, is filming from a different angle. Her footage shows that despite calls for medical help, Chauvin keeps Floyd pinned down for another seven minutes. We can’t see whether Kueng and Lane are still applying pressure. Floyd: [gasping] Officer: “What do you want?” Bystander: “I’ve been —” Floyd: [gasping] In the two videos, Floyd can be heard telling officers that he can’t breathe at least 16 times in less than five minutes. Bystander: “You having fun?” But Chauvin never takes his knee off of Floyd, even as his eyes close and he appears to go unconscious. Bystander: “Bro.” According to medical and policing experts, these four police officers are committing a series of actions that violate policies, and in this case, turn fatal. They’ve kept Floyd lying face down, applying pressure for at least five minutes. This combined action is likely compressing his chest and making it impossible to breathe. Chauvin is pushing his knee into Floyd’s neck, a move banned by most police departments. Minneapolis Police Department policy states an officer can only do this if someone is, quote, “actively resisting.” And even though the officers call for medical assistance, they take no action to treat Floyd on their own while waiting for the ambulance to arrive. Officer: “Get back on the sidewalk.” According to the complaints against the officers, Lane asks him twice if they should roll Floyd onto his side. Chauvin says no. Twenty minutes into the arrest, an ambulance arrives on the scene. Bystander: “Get off of his neck!” Bystander: “He’s still on him?” The E.M.T.s check Floyd’s pulse. Bystander: “Are you serious?” Chauvin keeps his knee on Floyd’s neck for almost another whole minute, even though Floyd appears completely unresponsive. He only gets off once the E.M.T.s tell him to. Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd’s neck for over eight minutes, according to our review of the video evidence. Floyd is loaded into the ambulance. The ambulance leaves the scene, possibly because a crowd is forming. But the E.M.T.s call for additional medical help from the fire department. But when the engine arrives, the officers give them, quote, “no clear info on Floyd or his whereabouts,” according to a fire department incident report. This delays their ability to help the paramedics. Meanwhile, Floyd is going into cardiac arrest. It takes the engine five minutes to reach Floyd in the ambulance. He’s pronounced dead at a nearby hospital around 9:25 p.m. Preliminary autopsies conducted by the state and Floyd’s family both ruled his death a homicide. The widely circulated arrest videos don’t paint the entire picture of what happened to George Floyd. Crowd: “Floyd! Floyd!” Additional video and audio from the body cameras of the key officers would reveal more about why the struggle began and how it escalated. The city quickly fired all four officers. And Chauvin has been charged with second degree murder. Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao were charged with aiding and abetting murder. But outrage over George Floyd’s death has only spread further and further across the United States.
The Times has reconstructed the death of George Floyd on May 25. Security footage, witness videos and official documents show how a series of actions by officers turned fatal. (This video contains scenes of graphic violence.)
On May 25, Minneapolis police officers arrested George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, after a convenience store employee called 911 to report that Mr. Floyd had bought cigarettes with a counterfeit $20 bill. Seventeen minutes after the first squad car arrived at the scene, Mr. Floyd was unconscious and pinned beneath three police officers, showing no signs of life.
By combining videos from bystanders and security cameras, reviewing official documents and consulting experts, The New York Times reconstructed in detail the minutes leading to Mr. Floyd’s death. Our video shows officers taking a series of actions that violated the policies of the Minneapolis Police Department and turned fatal, leaving Mr. Floyd unable to breathe, even as he and onlookers called out for help.
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