Opening statements begin in Derek Chauvin trial – 'Whole world is watching,' George Floyd family lawyer says

Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was videoed kneeling on George Floyd's neck before he died.

• Opening statements in the trial of Derek Chauvin began, 10 months after the white former Minneapolis police officer was recorded kneeling on George Floyd’s neck before he died, spurring months of protests nationwide.
• Chauvin faces charges of second- and third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
• The historic case comes amid a push by racial justice advocates, particularly those affiliated with the Black Lives Matter movement, to hold police accountable for unlawful violence against Black people.

Opening statements in the trial of Derek Chauvin began Monday, 10 months after the white former Minneapolis police officer was recorded kneeling on George Floyd’s neck before he died, spurring months of protests nationwide.

Chauvin, 45, faces charges of second- and third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. Court staff have said the trial is expected to last about two to four weeks. Chauvin has pleaded not guilty.

The historic case comes amid a push by racial justice advocates, particularly those affiliated with the Black Lives Matter movement, to hold police accountable for unlawful violence against Black people.

Prosecutor Jerry Blackwell, speaking from behind a sheet of plexiglass, said in his opening remarks that Chauvin caused Floyd’s death and acted well outside the bounds of his job when he refused to “let up” and “get up” for more than nine minutes.

“Derek Chauvin betrayed his badge when he used excessive and unreasonable force upon the body of Mr. George Floyd,” Blackwell told the jury.

Blackwell was followed by defense attorney Eric Nelson, who aimed to separate the case from Floyd’s status as an activist symbol while introducing the concept of a reasonable doubt to the jurors.

“There is no political or social cause in this courtroom,” Nelson said.

“The evidence is far greater than nine minutes and 29 seconds,” he said, before arguing that Chauvin’s conduct with Floyd constituted “exactly what he had been trained to do over the course of his 19-year career.”

The trial is taking place in Minneapolis and is closed to the public, though it is being streamed live, at Chauvin’s request, a first for a criminal trial in Minnesota.

Outside the courthouse, advocates for Floyd, including his family members and civil rights activist Rev. Al Sharpton, marked the start of the trial by kneeling for eight minutes and 46 seconds — the now-symbolic figure initially reported to be the amount of time that Chauvin held his knee on Floyd’s neck.

“The whole world is watching,” Floyd family attorney Benjamin Crump told reporters.

Three other former officers connected to Floyd’s May 25 arrest, Thomas Lane, Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao, will face a separate trial in August. Those officers have pleaded not guilty to aiding and abetting second-degree murder and manslaughter.