Perhaps the life of George Floyd would have been spared if Derek Chauvin and the three other Minneapolis police officers with him had just paid attention. Not just attention to Floyd as he cried for “momma” and said over and over he could not breathe, but attention to the bystanders who gathered around as Chauvin put his knee to Floyd’s neck, reapplying pressure at incremental moments, for 9 minutes and 29 seconds. What if police had heeded the cries from those people begging Chauvin to let up and the other officers to intervene, because Floyd had been subdued and was now in…
Lessons learned in George Floyd trial
It’s hard to convict a police officer in this country, but the evidence is stacking up against Chauvin. But we never had to get here. If only police had followed their own policies and listened to the people desperately pleading for rational action, George Floyd might be alive today.
