Source: Politics<\/p>\n
The chief medical examiner who ruled George Floyd\u2019s death a homicide testified Friday that the way police held him down and compressed his neck \u201cwas just more than Mr. Floyd could take,\u201d given the condition of his heart.<\/p>\n
Dr. Andrew Baker, the Hennepin County medical examiner, took the stand at the murder trial of former Officer Derek Chauvin for pressing his knee on or close to Floyd\u2019s neck for what prosecutors said was as much as 9 1\/2 minutes as the 46-year-old Black man lay pinned to the pavement last May.<\/p>\n
Asked about his finding that police \u201csubdual, restraint and neck compression\u201d led to Floyd\u2019s death, Baker said that Floyd had severe underlying heart disease and an enlarged heart that needed more oxygen than normal to function, as well as narrowing of two heart arteries.<\/p>\n
Baker said being involved in a scuffle raises adrenaline, which asks the heart to beat even faster and supply more oxygen.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd in my opinion, the law enforcement subdual, restraint and the neck compression was just more than Mr. Floyd could take by virtue of that, those heart conditions,\u201d the medical examiner said.<\/p>\n
Chauvin, 45, is charged with murder and manslaughter in Floyd\u2019s death May 25. Floyd was arrested outside a neighborhood market after being accused of trying to pass a counterfeit $20 bill.<\/p>\n
Bystander video of Floyd crying that he couldn\u2019t breathe as onlookers yelled at the white officer to get off him sparked protests and scattered violence around the U.S.<\/p>\n
Chauvin attorney Eric Nelson has argued that the now-fired white officer did what he was trained to do and that Floyd\u2019s illegal drug use and underlying health conditions, not Chauvin\u2019s knee, killed him. And autopsy found fentanyl and methamphetamine in Floyd\u2019s system.<\/p>\n
Under cross-examination, Baker agreed with Nelson\u2019s statement that Floyd\u2019s heart disease, narrowed arteries and drug use \u201cplayed a role\u201d in Floyd\u2019s death, though he testified that those things did not cause the death.<\/p>\n
As he put it under questioning from the prosecution: \u201cMr. Floyd\u2019s use of fentanyl did not cause the subdual or neck restraint. His heart disease did not cause the the subdual or the neck restraint.\u201d<\/p>\n
A medical expert who testified Thursday said a healthy person subjected to what Floyd endured would have died.<\/p>\n
Baker testified that his examination of Floyd\u2019s heart found no \u201cvisible or microscopic previous damage\u201d to the heart muscle. Baker also said he noticed no injury to Floyd\u2019s brain from either trauma or oxygen deprivation. And he said he did not notice any pills or pill fragments in Floyd\u2019s stomach.<\/p>\n
Baker also said he did not watch the harrowing video of the arrest before examining Floyd so that he would not be influenced by what he saw.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was aware that at least one video had gone viral on the internet, but I intentionally chose not to look at that until I had examined Mr. Floyd,\u201d he said. \u201cI did not want to bias my exam by going in with any preconceived notions that might lead me down one pathway or another.\u201d<\/p>\n
Other medical experts called as prosecution witnesses have likewise blamed Floyd\u2019s death on the way he was pinned down on the ground.<\/p>\n
Dr. Lindsey Thomas, a forensic pathologist who retired in 2017 from the Hennepin County Medical Examiner\u2019s Office and did not work on Floyd\u2019s case, testified earlier Friday that she agreed with Baker\u2019s findings, but was even more explicit, saying the \u201cprimary mechanism of death\u201d was asphyxia, or insufficient oxygen.<\/p>\n
She said she reached that conclusion mostly from video that showed Floyd struggling to breathe.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a death where both the heart and lungs stopped working. The point is, it\u2019s due to law enforcement subdual, restraint and compression,\u201d Thomas said.<\/p>\n
During cross-examination, Nelson asked Thomas about what could cause a heart to suddenly stop beating, noting that Floyd\u2019s bigger heart needed more blood and was working hard in a moment of stress and adrenaline, and that one of his arteries had a 90% blockage.<\/p>\n
Thomas said any blockage over 70% to 75% could be used to explain death, in the absence of another cause. But she also said some people can live just fine with an artery that is fully blocked.<\/p>\n
The defense attorney pressed Thomas by posing a hypothetical question.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s assume you found Mr. Floyd dead in his residence. No police involvement, no drugs, right?. The only thing you found would be these facts about his heart. What would you conclude to be the cause of death?\u201d Nelson asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn that very narrow set of circumstances, I would probably conclude that the cause of death was his heart disease,\u201d Thomas replied.<\/p>\n
In response to another hypothetical posed by Nelson, she agreed that she would certify Floyd\u2019s death as an overdose if there were no other explanations.<\/p>\n
But during re-questioning, prosecutor Jerry Blackwell ridiculed the defense attorney\u2019s hypotheticals and quickly got Thomas to repeat that the cause of Floyd\u2019s death was the restraint by police.<\/p>\n
\u201cAren\u2019t those questions a lot like asking, \u2019Mrs. Lincoln, if we take John Wilkes Booth out of this …\u201d Blackwell began, before Nelson objected.<\/p>\n
For the first time, a seat designated for Chauvin\u2019s family was occupied Friday, by a woman. She wasn\u2019t immediately identified. Chauvin\u2019s marriage ended in divorce in the months after Floyd\u2019s death.<\/p>\n
Also on Friday, Judge Peter Cahill called in a juror and questioned her about whether she had been subject to any outside influences. She replied that she briefly saw TV coverage with the sound off and said that her mother-in-law had texted her, \u201cLooks like it was a bad day\u201d but that she didn\u2019t reply.<\/p>\n
The judge allowed her to remain on the jury.<\/p>\n