Testimony Casts Doubt on George Floyd Case

Written by Hudson Crozier

What’s happening: A county medical examiner deemed George Floyd’s death a homicide to protect the “narrative” that police officers murdered Floyd, according to newly released testimony. This claim stems from a former prosecutor’s lawsuit over workplace disputes.

• Catch up: On the day of his 2020 arrest, Floyd had lethal amounts of fentanyl in his system and began saying “I can’t breathe” before officers began restraining him. Former Officer Derek Chauvin and three colleagues have been convicted and punished because Floyd died while Chauvin restrained him.

The testimony: Hennepin County Medical Examiner Andrew Baker initially found no “injury” to Floyd’s neck that would cause “asphyxia or strangulation,” a former prosecutor explained. Baker asked her, “What happens when the actual evidence doesn’t match up with the public narrative that everyone’s already decided on?” according to her testimony. “This is the kind of case that ends careers.”

• What happened next: After his initial autopsy report sparked outrage, Baker pivoted and said Floyd was choked to death, helping prosecutors’ case.

Why it matters: Floyd’s death was used to justify mass riots, defunding the police and other radical reforms including the expansion of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, and donations to left-wing organizations such as Black Lives Matter. The new testimony paints a bigger picture of how the facts were widely ignored.

• Mob rule: Another former prosecutor testified there was “extreme premium pressure” to file charges because “the city was burning down.” Chauvin’s trial also involved a BLM activist on the jury and a judge whose career focuses on “racial justice” and “equity.”