In Minneapolis, several people gathered around a memorial dedicated to George Floyd, a black man who died during a muscular arrest by the police.
– Jim Mone / AP / SIPA
Four police of
Minneapolis were sacked Tuesday after the death of a black man following a muscular arrest, a drama which started anger in this city of the North of the United States.
The family of George Floyd denounced an “excessive and inhuman” use of force and accused the police of racism.
“Being Black in the United States shouldn’t be a death sentence”
“The four Minneapolis police officers involved in the death of George Floyd have been dismissed,” city mayor Jacob Frey said on Twitter, saying “it was the right decision.”
Four responding MPD officers involved in the death of George Floyd have been terminated.
This is the right call.
– Mayor Jacob Frey (@MayorFrey) May 26, 2020
“Being black in the United States should not be a death sentence,” he said before at a press conference, saying it was okay for people to be angry.
On Tuesday, passers-by gathered and laid flowers at the place of the arrest, while others displayed posters imploring the police to “stop killing blacks”.
“He doesn’t breathe anymore, he doesn’t move anymore, take his pulse”
The scene, filmed Monday night for ten minutes by a passerby on Facebook Live, shows George Floyd, in his forties, tackled to the ground on his stomach by a policeman who immobilizes him with one knee on his neck.
The man complained for long minutes that he could not breathe and was in pain, while the agent, a white man, told him to stay calm. A second policeman keeps passersby away who start to get carried away when George Floyd does not move and seems unconscious. “He is no longer breathing, he is no longer moving, take his pulse,” repeats a witness while the police wait for an ambulance which arrives after several minutes. He was taken to a hospital where he died soon after.
A case that recalls that of Eric Garner
A police spokesman said Monday evening that the man, who appeared to be intoxicated or drugged, resisted arrest by officers called for a minor crime. It was after handcuffing him that the officer “realized the suspect was in medical distress” and called an ambulance, he said.
The case recalls that ofEric Garner, a black man who died after being asphyxiated during his arrest by white police in New York in 2014. The case had notably contributed to the emergence of the movement
Black Lives Matter (“The life of blacks counts”) and sparked a protest movement. Other deaths of blacks at the hands of the police had caused riots in the country.
New York and Los Angeles police have also banned controversial immobilization methods, such as tackles.
An open federal investigation
George Floyd’s family lawyer Benjamin Crump denounced “excessive, excessive and inhuman use of force” for a “non-violent” crime, and called for an end to “racial profiling and (de) minimization black lives by the police. “
Benjamin Crump is also the lawyer for the relatives of Ahmaud Arbery, a black jogger killed by two whites in February in the state of Georgia, a case which recently sparked outrage after a video of the incident was released.
Minneapolis police chief Medaria Arradondo has said an investigation will be launched by the federal police. “We will fully cooperate with the FBI investigation,” he said. The cameras worn by the police, which were on, could clarify the circumstances of the arrest.
Police violence deemed “unjustified”
Minnesota Democrat Senator Amy Klobuchar welcomed the sacking of the four police officers, saying on Twitter that it was “a step in the right direction.” “Justice must be done,” said the former Democratic primary candidate.
My statement on the officer-involved death in Minneapolis: pic.twitter.com/HUoGfXEj7R
– Amy Klobuchar (@amyklobuchar) May 26, 2020
The powerful civil rights association ACLU denounced “unjustified” police violence against people of color while strangulation immobilizations are “technically prohibited”. “The public saw the video, calling it a” medical incident “is an insult,” added the ACLU.
The death in 2016 of a black motorist killed by a police officer during a mundane police check had already sparked controversy in Minnesota. Philando Castile, 32, was shot dead in front of his partner and a young girl in a shock sequence also filmed live.
