Trial of Derek Chauvin in George Floyd’s death opens with clash over evidence

The horrific video of Mr Floyd’s death under the knee of a policeman took centre stage as the politically charged trial opened.

This still image is from a video that showed Minnesota police officer Derek Chauvin arresting George Floyd. Picture: AFP

Prosecutors said Monday that jurors should trust their eyes in the murder trial of a former police officer accused of killing George Floyd, but the defense said the case was more complicated than the viral video that sparked a wave of unrest last summer.

“You can believe your eyes. It’s homicide, it’s a murder,” Jerry Blackwell, a special assistant attorney general, said of the widely seen video depicting the 9 minutes and 29 seconds that prosecutors say the former officer, Derek Chauvin, held his knee on Mr. Floyd’s neck.

Mr. Chauvin’s attorney, Eric Nelson, asked jurors to look at the totality of the evidence and not any outside factors before making their decision.

“There is no political or social cause in this courtroom,” he said. “The evidence is far greater than 9 minutes and 29 seconds.”

The opening statements launched a nationally televised trial that over the coming weeks will delve deeply into the circumstances of the May 25, 2020, death of Mr. Floyd, which sparked months of protests, sometimes violent unrest and a debate over police tactics and the use of force against Black suspects.

Police officer Derek Chauvin. Picture: AFP

The White House said President Biden was watching the trial closely and supported a police-accountability bill named after Mr. Floyd working its way through Congress.

Prosecutors punctuated opening statements by playing for the jury the video that drew outrage last year when it went viral. It depicted Mr. Chauvin holding Mr. Floyd down on the street, his knee on his neck, as bystanders pleaded with officers to stop.

Mr. Chauvin “betrayed this badge, when he used excessive and unreasonable force upon the body of Mr. George Floyd when he put his knees upon his neck, and his back, grinding and crushing him until the very breath, no ladies and gentlemen, the very life left his body,” Mr. Blackwell said.

Mr. Chauvin, 45 years old, watched intently and took notes. He has pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder — unintentional, while committing a felony; third-degree murder; and second-degree manslaughter.

“Derek Chauvin did exactly what he was trained to do in his 19-year career,” Mr. Nelson said. “The use of force is not attractive,” but it can be necessary, Mr. Nelson said.

Mr. Nelson described Mr. Floyd, who was 46, as appearing drunk to witnesses when he entered a convenience store and used a fake $20 bill to buy cigarettes. Store clerks tried twice to get him to pay for the cigarettes or give them back before calling police, Mr. Nelson said.

He said that Mr. Floyd’s friends will testify that he fell asleep in the car and that they couldn’t awaken him before police arrived. Mr. Nelson said evidence will show Mr. Floyd took a combination of methamphetamine and fentanyl as police approached to conceal them.

Mr. Floyd resisted arrest throughout the incident and struggled with the officers even after he was placed on the ground, Mr. Nelson said. The evidence will show Mr. Floyd died of a combination of his heart conditions and the drugs he had taken, he said.

Three other officers were charged with abetting second-degree murder and manslaughter and are expected to face trial in August. Lawyers for the other defendants have made filings indicating they aren’t guilty.

Government officials have put together a massive security plan to try to prevent the widespread looting and arson that rocked the city last summer, including the burning of a precinct house.

Philonise Floyd, the brother of George Floyd, speaks alongside attorney Ben Crump, left, and Brandon Williams, the nephew of George Floyd outside the Hennepin County Government Center. Picture: AFP

Large military vehicles and Minnesota National Guard troops stood watch behind jersey barriers and fencing surrounding the Hennepin County Government Center in downtown Minneapolis, where the trial is taking place.

The proceeding is the U.S.’s highest-profile trial to move forward during the Covid-19 pandemic, with lawyers, the judge, witnesses and other participants wearing masks and sitting in socially distant places separated by plexiglass.

Court officials also took extraordinary steps to protect jurors who will be under intense pressure. The jurors’ names have been withheld from the public and they enter the courtroom through passages that aren’t accessible to the public.

Officer Chauvin during Mr Floyd’s arrest and subsequent death. Picture: AFP

Shortly before court proceedings got under way, Ben Crump, lead attorney for the family of Mr. Floyd, and Floyd family members held a news conference outside the building. At one point, they knelt on the ground as Al Sharpton kept time for 8 minutes and 46 seconds — the original estimate of time that Mr. Chauvin had his knee on Mr. Floyd’s neck.

“They say trust the system? They want us to trust the system? Well this is your chance to show us that we can trust you,” said Mr. Floyd’s brother, Terrence Floyd.

City leaders on March 12 announced a $27 million settlement with the family. As expected, prosecutors and Mr. Chauvin’s lawyer clashed over the meaning of the video and medical evidence, which are expected to be the decisive issues.

The county medical examiner ruled Mr. Floyd’s death a homicide and listed the cause as cardiopulmonary arrest complicated by “law enforcement subdual, restraint and neck compression.”

The county autopsy indicated Mr. Floyd suffered from heart disease and had drugs in his system.

“This was not a heart attack,” Mr. Blackwell countered, “there was no demonstrated injury to Mr. Floyd’s heart.”

To prove a charge of second degree murder, the prosecution has to demonstrate that Mr. Chauvin assaulted Mr. Floyd and that the assault contributed to his death. The defense need only raise a reasonable doubt about the contention to win its case.

The prosecution’s first witness was Jena Scurry, a 911 dispatcher who saw some of the incident unfolding via street camera video that was playing in the dispatch room.

She said she was so concerned by what she saw that she called a sergeant, saying her gut instinct told her something was wrong.

Tarini Parti and Deena Winter contributed to this article.

WSJ