New police bodycam footage has been released for Derek Chauvin’s murder trial from the moments before George Floyd’s senseless death.
Chauvin, 45, is being charged with third-degree murder, second-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter following the incident in 2020, in which he kneeled on Floyd’s neck while trying to restrain him.
The trial started earlier this week and the court heard the testimonies of a number of witnesses – which include a fireman who the policemen would not allow to help Floyd.
According to the BBC, the bodycam videos from Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao, all of whom are facing aiding and abetting charges, were shown in court. Chauvin’s bodycam fell to the ground during the incident, so his recording was not submitted as evidence.
A court has been shown new police bodycam footage of George Floyd pleading with officers during his arrest, saying: "I'm not a bad guy"https://t.co/nFP6CpM2a6 pic.twitter.com/1TuWn3XJLW
— BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) April 1, 2021
In the footage, Floyd, who was 46 at the time of his death, can be seen begging the cops not to kill him.
He was stopped after trying to use a counterfeit $20 note at a nearby store.
He can be heard saying:
“Please don’t shoot me, please, man… I just lost my mom.”
Floyd also tries to assure the policemen that he would do ‘anything you tell me to’ and says:
“I’m not a bad guy, man.”
Prosecutors in the Derek Chauvin case showed nearly 20 minutes of body cam footage of George Floyd's detainment from Thomas Lane, one of the former Minneapolis police officers involved in Floyd's fatal arrest (WARNING: DISTURBING VIDEO) https://t.co/KbiO4Auqxh pic.twitter.com/3XBTgzaEhG
— CBS News (@CBSNews) March 31, 2021
After facing some difficulties while trying to put him in the car, the officers drag Floyd out and Chauvin leans on his neck while he is on the floor.
The man then shouts:
“I love you mama’ and ‘I can’t breathe.”
Floyd’s last words ‘I can’t breathe’ were echoed by protesters against police brutality after he died.
According to The New York Times, the sentence has been spoken by 70 different people who lost their lives while in police custody, including Eric Garner, Derrick Scott, and Byron Williams.
Charles McMillian, 61, broke down and sobbed on the witness stand after watching footage of George Floyd pleading for his mother. "I couldn’t help but feel helpless," he said.
Catch up on Day 3 of Derek Chauvin's murder trial: https://t.co/3aFRWxCrcB pic.twitter.com/t0lsoBoCv4
— The New York Times (@nytimes) March 31, 2021
Earlier in court, prosecutor Jerry Blackwell said that Chauvin
“betrayed this badge when he used excessive and unreasonable force upon the body of Mr. George Floyd.”
He continued by saying:
“You will learn what happened in those nine minutes and 29 seconds when Derek Chauvin was applying that excessive force to the body of George Floyd. You will hear his voice get heavier, you will hear his words get further and further apart, you will hear his respiration get shallower and shallower, until it finally stops.”
He added:
“You will learn that use of excessive and unreasonable force against a citizen is an assault. We are going to show you that putting knees on somebody’s neck, somebody’s back, was a dangerous activity, and he did it without consideration for the impact it would have on Floyd’s life.”
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