"George Floyd Killed Himself"
That's the Defense
"George Floyd Killed Himself"
https://news.yahoo.com/killed-himself-defense-argument-emerges-100047064.html
Now, its the only defense they have (and it may actually work because juries are so pre-disposed to trust cops.
But imagine being an African American in that community (where there are 5 arrest deaths before Flod and Philando Castille not far away) or in the US where the Floyd murder is just another in a long string that included Garner.
Imagine being in that community and WATCHING THAT VIDEO or seeing a picture repeatedly of the cop with his knee on Floyd's neck, but hand in his pocket . . .
and the verdict comes back "not guilty"?
***********************************************************************
This is a Catch-22 of America and the reason that police reforms removed by Trump were so critical because this (FROM THE ARTICLE) is actually A DEFENSE THEY APPEAR TO HAVE CONSIDERED:
"In his July 7 motion, Gray included Minneapolis police training material on how to deal with an uncooperative suspect in handcuffs. A restraint position illustrated in a photograph closely resembles the method the officers used."
So why didn't they:
"The instruction material also includes a warning: "Sudden cardiac arrest typically occurs immediately following a violent struggle."
So it becomes "George Floyd Killed Himself"
The police are ABSOLUTELY entitled to raise the defense and they should (because its the only defense) because their lives are also on the line. NO PROBLEM RAISING the defense, but it should also be obvious what a defense verdict will do BASED ON THAT DEFENSE
This is why the key is reform TO PREVENT the event from happening in the first place (also from the article) as described here:
"When Floyd did not immediately comply with instructions, Lane pointed a gun at him.
"Please don't shoot me, man," Floyd said.
"I'm not shooting you, man," Lane said, holstering his gun once Floyd raised his hands.
Christine Gardiner, a criminal justice professor at Cal State Fullerton, said the adversarial approach, common in policing, set the tone for escalation.
“If they would have approached him respectfully, I think things would have turned out very differently,” she said.
It should NOT be surprising that a potential defense verdict will lead to more riots (sadly) . .. because of the 9 minute video and that awful picture
but what other option is there?
(2 autopsies have said he did not die of an overdose)
