Posted on 04/07/2021 12:49:10 PM PDT by USA Conservative
The trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis officer charged in George Floyd’s death, is continuing Wednesday after the prosecution this week has called a parade of Minneapolis police officials to the stand who have condemned Chauvin’s use of force as excessive.
Instead of closing ranks to protect a fellow officer behind the so-called “blue wall of silence,” some of the most experienced members of the Minneapolis force, including Chief Medaria Arradondo himself, have testified against Chauvin.
On Tuesday, Sgt. Ker Yang, the Minneapolis police official in charge of crisis-intervention training, and use-of-force instructor Lt. Johnny Mercil became the latest department members to testify as part of an effort by prosecutors to discredit Chauvin’s attorney Eric Nelson’s argument that Chauvin was doing what he was trained to do when he put his knee on Floyd’s neck.
But Chauvin’s defense lawyers wanted to change the view on this case and decided to play audio of George Floyd allegedly saying “I ate too many drugs,” while being detained.
That was supposed to change the outcome of this trial.
The video clip was presented during cross-examination of Los Angeles Police Sgt. Jody Stiger, a paid witness for the state, who claims that “no force should have been used” on Floyd.
Video below:
Here is the clipped section of the video — from Kueng and Lane’s body camera videos — in which defense attorney Eric Nelson suggests George Floyd said “I ate too many drugs.”
Video below:
But it seems that the video wouldn’t help Chauvin a lot because the prosecution did not even address the video clip during re-direct questioning.
And sent MN BCA Special Agent James Reyerson on the stand.
Also, here is the corresponding transcript which did not include an attempt to transcribe what Floyd said.
Remember, regardless, the jury is not seeing a transcript and they are not re-watching the clip over and over.
Images below:
As a reminder in the opening statements, Derek Chauvin’s defense attorney claimed that George Floyd died because of heart problems complicated by a drug overdose – and not because of a police officer’s knee on his neck.
A key autopsy report introduced as evidence in pre-trial motions reveals that drugs were indeed found in Floyd’s system.
Images from the report below:
Below you have a youtube link for the afternoon session: YouTube Link
Share your opinion in the comment section below.
By “mandate” I mean they are trained to use the least amount of force necessary to get the perp under control. As you say, that force must increase as the risk increases for the perp to break free. Batons I beleive are the .zst resort. They accused the police of using them on reginal deny (sp?) Unnecessarily, because the video they showed showed the police at the point where they were using them, and not before when reginal was fighting with them and when the tazers I beleive had no impact because Danny was also high as a kite at the time, on pcp if i remember right, which is notorious for causing massive strength and resistance to pain, but I don’t think the cops knew exactly what he was on at the time, they just knew they had a real battle in their hands, which the video did not show. The video made it look like they were beating a defenseless man for no reason.
Thats the problem with videos. They elicit emotions because all the facts are not known, and they “look bad”. The left exploit this fact in their lust to start race riots, to “punish the man” for the sin of being white.
I’m praying 5hat God will allow justice to prevail. If not, then the court system is broken. Sadly though this means riots because the ,eft are not jnterested in Facts or in truth and justice
I haven’t seen it yet...I’ll check it out...thank you!
It’s long, but a kind of quick read. I skimmed a lot of it, but concentrated on some key points brought up by the defense lawyer forcing the prosecution’s star witnesses to admit that Chauvin was doing what he was trained to do and facing them to admit the situation was much more volatile than the emotion stirrers who disdain 5he police would have us beleive.
Much of it is very well stated, and he really did trap the witnesses and force them to tell the truth objectively. Which I think will go a long ways towards helping the defense.
The analysis by the defense argued much of what i have argued here for a while now. Officers should never let 7p their guard on drugged out large perps, or even smaller peeps, until they can be more properly secured (like into a gurney where they are much less apt to break free suddenly upon waking fro having passed out. The defense made this point excellently and got the prosecution “use of force experts” to admit it. It was really a fantastic point in the questioning, and one I had been arguing g for awhile now, thouhg he did a much better job of explaining it)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.