By: Carlos Garcia
After several nights of violent rioting over the death of George Floyd in police custody, the release of preliminary findings from the medical examiner’s autopsy will likely not ease the nationwide tensions.
The findings were included in the charges made Friday against Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer who arrested Floyd and kneeled on his neck before he died Monday evening.
“The autopsy revealed no physical findings that support a diagnosis of traumatic asphyxia or strangulation,” read the summary of the findings from the the Hennepin County medical examiner.
This finding, of course, does not mean that the four police officers were not responsible for Floyd’s death, as prolonged pressure on the critical arteries and veins in the neck could well have caused heart trauma. Indeed, the report notes that the officers’ actions in restraining Floyd likely contributed to his death.
“Mr. Floyd had underlying health conditions including coronary artery disease and hypertensive heart disease. The combined effects of Mr. Floyd being restrained by the police, his underlying health conditions and any potential intoxicants in his system likely contributed to his death,” it concluded.
Chauvin was arrested, taken into custody and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter.
The charging document also said that Chauvin kept kneeling on Floyd’s neck for two minutes and 43 seconds after he became nonresponsive.
Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said that in addition to the charges against Chauvin that there were likely other charges forthcoming against the other officers involved.
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