15:50
Stiger says police should have stopped the force the moment Floyd stopped resisting
Stiger, an outside expert brought in by the prosecution, has told the jury that the police involved in restraining George Floyd should have ended any use of force at the point where he was turned face down and stopped resisting.
“Force shouldn’t have been used once he was in that position”, Steiger told the jury under direct examination.
It is a repeat of what other members of the Minneapolis police department have already told the jury, but the fact that it is now being said by an outside expert gives this argument even more weight.
Steiger says that the moment Floyd is taken down by officers, including Chauvin “He wasn’t trying to evade. He wasn’t trying to resist. ”
Says officers should have considered the fatal risk of Ppositional asphyxia.
Stiger has finished his direct questioning and is about to be questioned by Eric Nelson, Chauvin’s defense attorney.
15:32
We are back on the road and Sergeant Stiger he has resumed his testimony.
From the beginning, prosecutors have asked Stiger to state how long he understands that Chauvin placed Floyd on a knee-to-neck restraint.
Repeat that critical time period that has been mentioned so many times in this test: nine minutes and 29 seconds. It is the total time that Chauvin used what prosecutors describe as lethal and unreasonable force against George Floyd, who was unarmed.
Prosecutors ask Stiger whether the use of force should be reasonable at all times.
“Yes.” He answers.
Now Stiger is being asked to examine a series of still images showing various moments during the arrest. He points out that the images show Chauvin’s knee to Floyd’s neck and the use of pain gratification on Floyd’s hands and arms while lying on his stomach and handcuffed.
15:14
We expect the hearing to resume in the next 10 minutes.
Before it all starts again, I thought I’d share a profile interview I wrote last month with the vice president of the Minneapolis city council, Andrea Jenkins.
Jenkins has been one of the strongest voices in the community since George Floyd’s death and I spoke to him at length about how the city is preparing for this historic trial.
She told me about Zoom:
“That [the murder trial] it’s going to be traumatic. We want to have as peaceful a situation as possible, and really have resources there that people can turn to if there are challenges. ”
He also spoke about being in regular contact with members of George Floyd’s family.
“They are really more concerned with justice,” he told me. “They want to see justice and they want to make sure George Floyd’s name is honored for the role his legacy plays in social justice.”
Jenkins She is also the first openly transgender African American woman elected to public office. and shared some more details about his childhood and his rise to the position.
You can read the full profile interview here:
14:12
Day eight of the Derek Chauvin murder trial
Good morning and welcome to The Guardian’s continued live coverage and analysis of Derek Chauvin’s murder trial.
Chauvin, a former Minneapolis police department officer who is white, faces three criminal charges in connection with the death in custody of George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man whose passing sparked worldwide recognition of racism. The most severe of these is second degree murder, which carries a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison.
The trial marks an unprecedented moment in Minnesota criminal justice history as proceedings are streamed live due to the coronavirus pandemic.
We have seen a large number of witnesses testify for the prosecution, including high-level figures in the Minneapolis Police Department, a variety of eyewitnesses, and medical professionals.
Yesterday he saw the state call its first expert, Sergeant Jody Stiger, a 28-year veteran of the Los Angeles Police Department. Like others with expert knowledge of the use of force by police, Stiger told the court that he believed Chauvin’s prolonged use of the knee-to-neck restraint was excessive force.
“My opinion was that the force was excessive,” Stiger testified, telling the court that he had reviewed the department’s use of police force and the video capturing George Floyd’s arrest.
Sergeant Stiger is expected to continue testifying when court resumes this morning at 9 a.m. CT.
My colleague Chris McGreal has been covering every day of the trial so far, and filed another report after yesterday’s testimony.
We will continue to provide you with the key lines of testimony, as well as a more in-depth analysis.
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