#Chauvin character witness trial#

… From there on, he was lifeless,” Williams said. … His eyes slowly rolled to the back of his head and the blood coming out of his nose. “He was going through distress because of the knee.

Deeper into his testimony, Williams further elaborated on this assessment. “I told it was a blood choke,” Williams said of the former officer’s placement of his knee on Floyd’s neck. Later in his testimony, Williams recalled walking up on the scene of Floyd’s eventual death. Later in his testimony on Monday, Williams explained the difference between air choke and blood choke techniques, the latter of which he described as a chokehold move aimed at cutting off the circulation of arteries and stops blood flowing. On Monday, Williams said he had previously encountered Minneapolis officers during his training.

#Chauvin character witness trial#

Nelson told the court he intended to show evidence supporting this argument.Īmong the witnesses called on the first day of trial was Donald Williams, an MMA fighter who witnessed Floyd’s May 2020 death and also took the stand on the second day after day one was adjourned by Judge Peter Cahill due to what he said was a “major technical glitch” mid-testimony. Chauvin’s defense, meanwhile, attempted to argue (notably spurring immediate ridicule from those closely watching this case) that Floyd had actually died due to a combination of drugs and an underlying health condition. Today’s settlement shows that we CANNOT be written off as unimportant and lacking value!”įootage of Chauvin holding his knee on Floyd’s neck was also played in court. “His death is now a symbol for the countless Black lives taken too soon and without cause. “George Floyd had more witnesses to his torture than any other killing in modern history,” attorney Ben Crump, who represents Floyd’s family, said after the settlement was announced. The remaining juror was dismissed, as is protocol, when all the other selected jurors showed up for court proceedings on the first day of the trial.Īlso in March, the city of Minneapolis agreed to pay a reported $27 million to settle a civil suit from the family of George Floyd. Of those 15, a dozen were selected to participate in deliberations while two people were chosen as alternates. By March 23, 15 jurors (six of which are people of color) had been formally selected. At the time, the reinstatement of the third-degree murder charge had not yet been confirmed. Jury selection for the trial, which was briefly delayed, began on March 9.

Nelson is the defense attorney for Chauvin and-as detailed in a recent Bloomberg Law piece-is known for previously repping clients in alcohol-related offense cases, as well as several lower-stakes homicide cases. Matthew Frank is also a prosecutor in the murder trial.Įric J. “We look forward to presenting all three charges to the jury.” Chauvin,” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, who’s leading the prosecution, said when announcing the charge’s reinstatement. “The charge of third-degree murder, in addition to manslaughter and felony murder, reflects the gravity of the allegations against Mr. And while the third-degree murder charge was initially dismissed in October, the court in this year’s trial reinstated that charge on March 11. In June 2020, a charge of second-degree murder was added. Within days of Floyd’s death in May of 2020, footage of which saw Chauvin holding his knee on Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes, Chauvin was charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.