True, but the examiner likely made the ruling under duress and in an effort to keep the peace (didn't work)... and in that same ruling, the medical examiner said that Floyd had a "fatal level of fentanyl" in his system. Reasonable doubt? Probably for some members of the jury.
He had his knee on him for 9 minutes, 5 of which he probably was dead while bystanders were begging Chauvin to let go and check his god damn pulse to see if he's alive. Again, stare at a wall for a literal 5 minutes using your phone's timer.
Right.... if I walk out of my doctor's office after he told me I had one hour to live and someone shot me, that person would be guilty of murder.
Another thing... shortly after Chauvin was arrested, he agreed to plead guilty to 3rd degree murder and serve 10+ years in jail, but it needed federal approval. Barr refused to grant it. Sounds like a guilty man to me. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-new...l-fired-officer-derek-chauvin-george-n1257457
This is why it's very important to get the Third degree charge added. Second degree isn't a slam dunk and our poster here is just parroting the defense line. While it might be difficult to get a full acquittal based on that argument it very well could affect the argument for second degree.
another view: https://theweek.com/articles/971076/manslaughter-murder-minneapolis excerpt: If that's all prosecutors attain, though, the anger and disappointment will be immense, and understandably so. In a strictly moral analysis, I think Chauvin's action did rise to the level of murder. And it's exactly that belief which makes me prefer the comparative certainty of the manslaughter charge over the legal stretch to murder charges. Give me that bird in the hand. Some justice is better than none, and even unsatisfactory legal accountability would do more to prevent future police misconduct than another cop walking away from brutality unpunished. more at the link
Any defense attorney worth their salt is going to ask the expert witnesses if they can say with certainty that George Floyd would have lived if Chauvin had not knelt on his neck, given the fentanyl and methamphetamine in his system and the condition of his heart, and keeping in mind the video where Floyd clearly says he can't breath and seems to be distressed when he is seated in the back of the police cruiser. If the expert says he may have died regardless, then the case is over and I would move the judge to dismiss based on the state of the evidence. On top of that you get in that Chauvin offered to turn on the A/C or open the window when Floyd said he couldn't breath, and it clearly shows he had no malicious intent. I would not at all be surprised at an acquittal. I would probably also move for a mistrial and a change of venue on the basis that the crowd yelling at the potential jurors as they are going into the courthouse taints the jury pool and deprives Chauvin of due process.
He was on his neck for 9 minutes, 5 of them completely motionless and possibly dead while bystanders were begging him to check his pulse. His intent was to kill either out of malicious hatred or.wgo of not wanting to have civilians tell him what to do. Who ****ing kneels on someone's neck for an entire 5 minutes while they are motionless? Why? State at a wall for 5 minutes. Time it. You have the dumbest and and least empathetic takes. It's as if you are trying to illicit a reaction. Usually that's a sign of narcissism.
Wait - what? If I shoot somebody while they are having a heart attack (even if I didn't know that), it's all cool because they might have died regardless?
When do you think he formed the intent to kill? Many hundreds of cops. It is a control hold. It has been taught. There were photographs of other cops using the same control hold circulated. One was a cop in France I believe using the exact same hold on the same day. The other people didn't die, Floyd did. That is the only difference. It is almost as if the officer was not trying to kill him. I once had a jury watch a video of a motel room door for 19 minutes. I know how long 5 minutes is. I have seen bodycam of officers holding suspects down for 5, 10, 15 minutes or more. I look at things using logic and reason. I don't give a **** about George Floyd or Derek Chauvin. They both could have lived or died that day and it wouldn't affect my day in the slightest. I just have a professional interest in legal matters.
No you aren't using logic and reason and are brushing off the fact that when cops use that tactic even though it is highly criticized, they stop WHEN THE INDIVIDUAL IS MOTIONLESS AND UNCONSCIOUS hence why they always say "stop tensing up, stay still and we will stop" or something along those lines. Well Floyd definitely did that because he was literally unconcoius or dead for 5 minutes under Chaivin's knee. Hence why he plead guilty to man slaughter for a lesser charge because even he knew he was guilty. Again, stare at a God damn wall for 5 minutes. That's how long he was on a human's neck while the Individual was unconcoius where bystanders that don't have weapons were begging the officer to allow them to check his pulse. They must be some brave Individuals to have the cojones to check the pulse of a unconscious man. His intent to kill was probably during the time the bystanders were telling him what to do. It was a display of Authoritarianism and ego. Hence why he was just staring at the bystanders with direct eye contact not even remotely concerned with the vital signs of the man he had his knee on.
If they cannot prove that your bullet contributed to his death, then it would not be murder. Of course, shooting at him would still be attempted murder. Causing the death of a human being is an element of murder, that is the actus reus. If he died without regard to Chauvin's actions, then obviously it was not a murder. The mens rea varies depending on the charge. For the allegations currently charged against Chauvin it is acting with a wonton disregard for life or acting with a depraved mind. If he can show he was using a recognized hold that he had perhaps done hundreds of times with no ill effect, that would show that he was not acting with wonton disregard for life, and that instead there was simply an unintended and unexpected result.
you sound like you just went to your first day of law school They just have to show he recklessly did the dangerous act. It's hard to argue 9 minutes on someone's neck was not reckless.
Scott Johnson is following and describing jury selection in the trial: https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2021/03/chauvin-trial-day-3.php
I presume you understand the difference between causation and proximate causes. Again if Floyd died of a heart attack and had a weakened system because of drugs that still wouldn't rule out that being held that way for an excessive period of time led to his death. The argument would only apply that he would've died anyway if no one did anything to him. Clearly someone did something to him. I'm someone who has done the technique in question and taught it. Yes it's a control and compliance hold but it's not one meant to be put on for that long. It's not innocuous and can certainly cause injury. Further Chauvin didn't apply it correctly so not only is it a technique already with a certain amount of risk not applying it correctly for an excessive amount of time certainly could lead to severe injury and even death. I have no doubt that you might've seen LEO hold down a suspect for 15 minutes but was it the same technique? Was it also a situation where there were other LEO also holding the suspect down while cuffed? Was it also a situation where they could've put the suspect into a squad? You have to consider the totality of the situation. I have no doubt Chauvin and the other LEO's defense attorneys will argue that what they did wasn't excessive and that Floyd had drugs in his system, etc.. That is their job. Further I won't absolutely rule out an acquittal as a lot can happen and skillful attorneys can sway the jury plus the prosecution could make mistakes. As people not on the jury though the facts as I see them are pretty solid that Chauvin acted with depraved intent.
For what's happening outside the courtroom this city so far is calm even though there is tension. Protests have been peaceful and since Sunday have gotten smaller. The Hennepin County court house and government center is surrounded by fencing and barriers with a strong national guard presence. It looks like the US Capitol did on Jan. 20th and March 4th. With how drawn out things are I'm thinking things will be calm until we really start getting into the testimony. The mayor and governor have already said when the jury starts deliberating there will be a very strong LE and guard presence in anticipation of the verdict. So far not much is happening in my neighborhood but at that time as neighbors will probably get ready.
That zone at 38th and Chicago has been there since George Floyd was killed. The city is still debating what to do with it.
