The murder trial of former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin is set to resume at 8:30 a.m. CT Tuesday when one or more legal issues will be discussed, according to reports.
Witness testimony and the presentation of evidence will resume shortly after.
During that time, Morries Lester Hall, a key witness who was with George Floyd on the day he died, will appear remotely from the Hennepin County jail. He recently informed the court that he will invoke the Fifth Amendment if asked to testify in the ongoing trial of Chauvin, who has been accused of murder and manslaughter in the May 2020 death of Floyd.
On Monday, Minneapolis police Chief Medaria Arradondo took the stand. Arradondo, the city’s first Black chief, fired Chauvin and three other officers the day after Floyd’s May 25 death. In June, he called Floyd’s death a “murder” in response to an inquiry from the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
FAST FACTS
- Tuesday is the seventh day of trial proceedings in the case involving Chauvin.
- Chauvin, 45, is charged with second and third-degree murder and manslaughter in the death of Floyd.
Chauvin, 45, is charged with second and third-degree murder and manslaughter in the death of Floyd.
Arradondo testified that Chauvin, a 19-year veteran of the force, should have let Floyd up sooner and that the pressure on Floyd’s neck did not appear to be light to moderate, as called for under the department’s neck-restraint policy. He also said Chauvin failed in his duty to render first aid before the ambulance arrived and that he violated policy requiring officers to de-escalate tense situations if they can to avoid or minimize the use of force.
“That action is not de-escalation,” the police chief said. “And when we talk about the framework of our sanctity of life and when we talk about our principles and the values that we have, that action goes contrary to what we are talking about.”
Earlier Monday, the emergency room doctor who pronounced Floyd dead after trying to resuscitate him testified that he theorized at the time that Floyd’s heart most likely stopped because he didn’t get enough oxygen.
Prosecutors argue Chauvin, who is White, killed Floyd by kneeling on the 46-year-old Black man’s neck for 9 minutes, 29 seconds as he lay face-down in handcuffs outside a corner market.
The defense argues that Chauvin did what he was trained to do and that Floyd’s use of drugs prior to his arrest, as well as underlying health conditions and adrenaline, caused his death. An autopsy conducted by the Hennepin County Medical Examiner found fentanyl and methamphetamine in his system.
Fox News will present coverage surrounding the historic trial throughout the week. In addition to programming on the Fox News Channel, Fox News Digital will provide livestreams of the proceeding at FoxNews.com.
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