The fourth day of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin’s murder trial resumed on Thursday with more testimonies, including an emotional testimony from George Floyd’s former girlfriend, Courteney Ross, on the couple’s past struggles with drug addiction.
Minneapolis paramedic Derek Smith testified on Thursday that Floyd appeared to be dead when he arrived on the scene. On Wednesday, bystanders testified and new footage of George Floyd in Cup Foods moments before the police were called was released.
Smith testified that he was the one who took the handcuffs off of George Floyd and said on the stand upon seeing Floyd, “I thought he was dead.” He said he tried resuscitating Floyd because “he is a human being and I was trying to give a second chance at life.”
Floyd, a Black man, died in police custody on May 25, 2020, after Chauvin pinned his knee against Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes. Chauvin is charged with second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. Keep it here for all the latest updates on the trial.
