Minneapolis PD’s Chief Gives Damning Testimony Against Chauvin
As the Derek Chauvin murder trial progresses, eyewitness testimony is proving to be the most vital part of the prosecution’s case against the police officer accused of murdering George Floyd. Chauvin’s defense team is struggling to keep their case afloat amidst the compelling and often heartwrenching accounts of the more than nine minutes Chauvin was filmed kneeling on Floyd’s neck. Last week, jurors heard from 19 people, including several who witnessed Floyd’s death and broke down in tears as they described their attempts to intervene on his behalf.
The televised trial caused even more of a stir on Monday when Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo took the stand. Arradondo testified about police training and tactics but wasn’t allowed to discuss the firing of Chauvin. However, Chief Arradondo told the court Monday that former officer Chauvin’s restraint of George Floyd “absolutely” violates department policy and goes against “our ethics and our values.”
Katie Blackwell, who led departmental training, told the court Monday she selected Chauvin as a field training officer. Police departments use field training officers as mentors and trainers for younger officers or cadets. In Minneapolis, after completing police academy training, cadets do months of field training in which they partner with veteran training officers. Blackwell testified that she selected Chauvin as a training officer. During his testimony, Chief Arradondo made it clear that Chauvin’s behavior wasn’t and isn’t reflective of the training their officers receive.
“This is not what we teach,” Chief Arradondo said when speaking of Chauvin’s behavior.
In some of the most damning testimony so far, Minneapolis Police Chief Arradondo says that what Derek Chauvin did was not a reasonable use of force, was not part of policy, "not part of our training, and certainly not part of our ethics or values." https://t.co/plmrKZjQKz
— Rantt Media (@RanttMedia) April 5, 2021
The doctor who provided emergency care to Floyd at Hennepin County Medical Center was the first person to testify Monday morning. He testified that at the time of the incident, he believed Floyd died from a lack of oxygen, rather than an overdose or heart attack, based on the information he had.
Remember, in June Chief Medaria Arradondo wrote,
“Mr George Floyd’s tragic death was not due to a lack of training—the training was there. Chauvin knew what he was doing…what happened to Mr. Floyd was murder.”#DerekChauvin https://t.co/OLWIeJRb3R pic.twitter.com/iAAh7KtCRG
— Omar Jimenez (@OmarJimenez) April 5, 2021