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The teenager who filmed the video of George Floyd’s death and a rescuer who was not authorized to intervene by police to help him gave heartbreaking accounts of the tragic events that sparked a global protest against the racism.
Darnella, now 18, was one of four young witnesses who spoke on the second day of the trial against former police officer Derek Chauvin, accused of murder.
He said when he saw Floyd “beg your life“I compare him to his dad, brother, cousins and cough ‘because they’re all black.” He added that “I always apologize” (to Floyd) for “not doing more “.
On the other hand, Geneviève Hansen, a firefighter’s first responder, said police did not allow her to provide medical assistance that could have saved Floyd’s life.
Questions from racial inequalities and police practices They are at the center of this affair.
On Monday, the session that opened the trial learned of how Chauvin pressed his knee against Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes as he arrested him in Minneapolis in May 2020. The prosecution claims it was. of a “main cause” of his death.
Defense lawyers have noted that they will argue that George Floyd, 46, died of an overdose. Derek Chauvin, 45, denies murder and manslaughter charges.
The three other police officers present – Tou Thao, J Alexander Keung and Thomas Lane – will be tried later this year.
What did we hear on the second day of the trial?
Four young women, who were under 18 at the time of the incident, testified in court, but the cameras were turned off so the jury could not see them and they were only identified by their first names.
Darnella, then 17, was on her way to the Cup Foods store with her 9-year-old cousin when they stumbled upon the arrest on the street.
He said he started filming with his mobile because “I saw a terrified man begging for his life. It wasn’t fair – he was in pain.”
He described how he heard George Floyd “say“ I can’t breathe. ”He was terrified, calling his mother.
Darnella said that witnessing his death changed his life.
“When I look at George Floyd, I see my dad, I see my brother, my cousins, my coughs – because they’re all black,” she said between tears. “And I see how it could have been one of them.”
“I keep asking exonerate a George Floyd for not having done more. ”
Her young cousin also testified, saying she was[traduction]“Sad and somewhat angry” at what she saw. “He looked like he was in pain.”
Two friends, Alissa, 18, and Kalen, 17, had visited the store when they were arrested. Both described the feeling helpless to see Floyd’s last moments before he was “just lying there, no longer fighting or resisting”.
Tense exchange
The last witness of the day was Geneviève Hansen, a first responder of the firefighters who was not on duty that day. She explained that the police had not allowed her to provide medical assistance that could have saved Floyd’s life.
He said he expected Monday May 25 to be a calm day, when he heard a woman screaming that police were killing a black man who was handcuffed and face down in the street .
Trained in medical emergencies, Hansen described how he approached the police forcing Floyd to the ground and identified himself as a rescuer.
In a video that was shown in court, Hansen is seen demanding that the police take his pulse.
“It was not moving,” he said. “The first thing that worried me was his face which was flattened against the ground. Swollen. It seemed to me that it was swollen.
Her voice began to shake as she described the helplessness she felt at not being allowed by the police to help.
The tension increased when the defense attorney questioned her, question their paramedical abilities.
When Hansen responded harshly, Judge Peter Cahill caught his eye.
“Blood key”
Another witness, Donald Williams II, trained in mixed martial arts, was questioned for more than an hour by prosecutors and defense on Monday and a second time on Tuesday.
Williams detailed how Chauvin used a dangerous technique called a “blood lock” and moved his knee from side to side to put more pressure on Floyd’s neck and back.
He rejected the defense suggestion that his interactions and those of other witnesses with the police had been threatening to the uniforms.
In his presentation of the case on Monday, prosecutor Jerry Blackwell told jurors that Chauvin had “betrayed his badge” by kneeling on Floyd’s neck and using “excessive and unacceptable force” to stop him.
Chauvin’s lawyer Eric Nelson argued that the case was about evidence and not “a political or social cause”. He noted that Floyd had taken drugs at the time of his arrest “to try to hide them from the police”, and suggested that this had contributed to his death.
Throughout the process, Chauvin has remained silent but attentive, constantly taking notes of the testimonies he hears.
Why is this case so important?
The video Darnella took of Derek Chauvin kneeling on George Floyd’s neck was shown around the world and sparked a massive protest and a settling of scores over racism in America.
For many, Floyd’s death in police custody has become a graphic symbol of police brutality – especially against people of color – and generated global protests demanding racial justice.
Despite the global assertion, however, this case is not straightforward. In the United States, there are very few times that a police officer is convicted of a death that occurred while on duty, if at all.
The verdict in this case will be widely interpreted as an indication of how the US legal system treats deaths that occur in police custody.
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