The family of African-American George Floyd, who was killed in a brutal police operation, has filed a lawsuit against the US city of Minneapolis and the four police officers involved for unlawful killing. The officials used excessive and unjustified force in the operation and thus violated the 46-year-old’s fundamental rights, lawyer Ben Crump said on Wednesday (local time) with reference to the application.
The lawsuit was filed in a federal city court in the state of Minnesota. He accused the city administration of “deliberate indifference” because it failed to take action against dangerous police practices and to properly train its police officers. In doing so, she promoted a culture of excessive violence and impunity.
“He (Floyd) was literally tortured to death, not in a third world country, but here in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States in 2020,” added Crump. The goal of the team of lawyers is to make it in the future terribly expensive for the police to “illegally kill marginalized people, especially blacks”.
A city council attorney called Floyd’s death a “tragedy” and announced that the lawsuit would be examined. It is important that the process against the accused police officers runs smoothly. The main trial against them is scheduled to begin in March 2021.
The main perpetrator is charged with “second degree murder”
The 46-year-old Floyd was arrested on May 25 by the police on suspicion of a minor counterfeiting crime. A policeman had put his knee on the neck of the man lying on the floor for almost nine minutes. Floyd’s death sparked nationwide and worldwide demonstrations against excessive police violence and racism.
The main perpetrator is charged with “second degree murder”. This roughly corresponds to homicide in a particularly serious case and can be punished with up to 40 years in prison. The four police officers involved were released from police service the day after Floyd’s death.
The lawyer did not disclose the amount of the family’s claims for compensation in the civil lawsuit. In May 2019, the city of Minneapolis was sentenced to pay 20 million dollars (17.6 million euros) to the bereaved relatives of a yoga teacher who was killed by a police officer while sitting in her car. (jni, dpa, AFP)
–
