Death of George Floyd and Subsequent Riots.

[Cope]

We do not know if he passed the counterfeit bill accidently or deliberately. He could have gotten the counferfeit bill from someone else and innocently passed it along.

It is also possible (and I think more likely) that the cashier noticed that the bill was counterfeit during the exchange (it is typical to check notes immediately before putting them in the till) and requested that Floyd return the cigarettes. That would explain why the police were called. If we hear the 911 call during the trial we may get some more information.

Fentanyl is used as a pain medicine and athlete's often develope aches and pains, especially ex football players, so perhaps he was self medicating. Metamphetamine he was abusing, and the drugs might or.might not have contributed to his dearh, but he would not have died that day without a knee on his neck.

Why Floyd was using drugs is irrelevant. What matters is the way that they affected his behaviour and the extent to which they compromised him physiologically. Floyd has to take responsibility for abusing illicit substances whilst suffering from serious cardiopulmonary conditions. He also has to take responsibility for compelling the police to subdue him on the street. There is a strong possibility that these facts alone will create a reasonable doubt that the police are criminally culpable for Floyd's death, particularly with regard to the murder charge.

Even if Floyd died.from a heart attack that just happened to happen at the time arrest, the cops would have been guilty of negligence waiting 9 minites before calling for medical help during an heart attack is unacceptable.

Floyd died of a cardiac arrest, not a heart attack. The police did not wait 9 minutes until calling for medical assistance.

Floyd's deafh is all on the cops - Floyd was in obvious distress, and the cops.callously did nothing. The use of the neck hold seemed unnecessary, Floyd waa handcuffed, and did not seem to be strugling. Neck holds have know to be lethal. I don't thinl the cops intended to kill Floyd, but a drunk driver does not intend to kill his victims either.

While.a trial might reveal evidence that would show the copa were not quite as bad as it appears. maybe they could see he was intoxicated and were he might turn suddenly violemt, I don't see avoiding the conclusion they were criminally neglegent

Floyd's distress does not prove that the police used unreasonable force during the arrest. The officers - particularly Chauvin - are likely guilty of gross negligence for keeping Floyd pinned down after his heart had stopped (they should have performed CPR immediately) but that doesn't mean that they are culpable for his death.

Agree 100%, but I was responding specifically to Heathen's facetious "Or that he was high on fentanyl. If you get behind the wheel while high as a kite you deserve to be dragged out of car and handcuffed." with an equally facetious response. Heathen seemed to be seeking to re-frame the conversation away from Chauvin's accountability.

As you say, none of that suggests Floyd deserved to die. Every time we refocus the conversation to Floyd's habits or behaviour, we risk justifying Chauvin's overreach. That's why I will continue to ask anybody who insinuates that Floyd's drug habits or background put him at fault for his death, whether they think he deserved to die. I agree that it shouldn't be a case of premeditated murder, but everything I've seen suggests that there are definitely grounds for a lesser homicide charge - the results of which will be decided by a jury with greater access to the details of the case, not us.

Chauvin isn't being charged with premeditated murder. He's being charged with Murder in the Second Degree (ie. felony murder).

[Heathen Hammer]

Sorry, but while he did take fentanyl, it was not at high enough levels to be initoxicating.

Plus there was no indication Floyd's behaviour he was high, and the cops had no way to know he was on fentanyl. Floyd was in a stopped car, and he was arrested for passing a counterfeit $20, not intoxication.

I have to wonder if Floyd had been white accountant, would they have arrested and him handcuffed? I would hope if I accidently passed counterfeir bill I was given, the cops would give me a chance to explain before handcuffing and putting a knee on my neck. If they did that to me, it would make me a little annoyed.

However, perhaps the cops noticed indications of intoxication, slightly slurring of speech, glassy eyed expression, etc., that is not readily apparent in the video. With Floyd being. big guy, 6'7", and his criminal record, perhaps the cops decided not to take chances. That is why guilt needs to be determined by. jury.

I'd recommend to actually watch the footage of the arrest. He was clearly intoxicated and was definitely resisting arrest.
So cops were justified in arresting him.
Whether their actions contributed to this death is another issue.

[Gromovnik]

Mmm, 77 pages of "he was asking for it". Delicious, keep it up, boys!

[Heathen Hammer]

Mmm, 77 pages of "he was asking for it". Delicious, keep it up, boys!

While 30 people that died as a result of BLM/antifa race riots sure deserved that, right?
Sorry for not immediately taking the side a convict that robbed a pregnant woman at gun point just because he is black.

[Gromovnik]

How is George Floyd responsible for those 30 people who died after his murder?

[Common Soldier]

I'd recommend to actually watch the footage of the arrest. He was clearly intoxicated and was definitely resisting arrest.
So cops were justified in arresting him.
Whether their actions contributed to this death is another issue.

Thanks. If he waa intoxicated, it definitely puts a different spin on matters. A neck hold for a guy as big as Floyd, 6'7" or 2 metes, is not as unreasonable fo
or a guy with a felony conviction for a violent crime. An intoxicated guy that big could injure someone even handcuffed

[Gromovnik]

So being big is a capital offence?

[Heathen Hammer]

How is George Floyd responsible for those 30 people who died after his murder?

Was his death justifying antifa/BLM causing death of 30 more others?

So being big is a capital offence?

Floyd was on drugs behind a wheel of a vehicle. His arrest was justified by that alone.

[Common Soldier]

So being big is a capital offence?

No, and who said it.big was a crime? Please point out where that was said.

A large strong person intoxicated on drugs might require a difference response than an old frail elder person. A neck holdnwouldnhave been gery, very hard ronjustifynusing on an frail, weak 80.years old. Insteas of murder, Floyd's death could have been an unfortunate accident broughtnonnby Floyd's own drug use and possible poor judgement by the cops. But is for the jury to decide, not you or a bias media that repeatedly promoted racial tensions.

Context matters and that is the one thing thr media leaves out.

[Lord Thesaurian]

Mayor Lori Lightfoot defended the Chicago Police Department’s ban on protesters being able to demonstrate on the block where she lives, telling reporters Thursday that she and her family at times require heightened security because of threats she receives daily.

“I’m not going to make any excuses for the fact that, given the threats I have personally received, given the threats to my home and my family, I’m going to do everything I can to make sure they’re protected,” Lightfoot said. “I make no apologies whatsoever for that.”

Since the order, and even for a time just prior to its writing, Chicago cops have repeatedly blocked protesters’ access to the block with groups of officers and barricades. Police have often kept protesters contained at the nearby corner of Kimball and Wrightwood avenues, though one standoff between activists and officers last month saw police go as far as bringing in an armored vehicle in case things got out of hand.

Aside from the expanded police presence to block protesters from reaching her home, Lightfoot already receives 24/7 protection from cops including officers stationed at the residence. The aggressive policing has sometimes siphoned away resources from the area’s police district, some sources with knowledge of the situation said, leading to quiet grumbling.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/polit...waq-story.html

24 people have been shot in Chicago this weekend.
https://abc7chicago.com/chicago-shoo...-this/6383634/
Sporadic riots and looting continue.
https://www.winknews.com/2020/08/10/...lved-shooting/
The mayor is resisting demands to slash police funding by as much as 75%.
https://www.wbez.org/stories/activis...2-7fff7b520680

[Heathen Hammer]

"Police protection for me, but not for thee".
Lori Lightfoot banning protests where she lives but allowing them everywhere else is the epitome of this cringe neofeudal Democrat mentality, where they literally think that they are above anyone else just because they hold government positions. That's some third world .

[Vanoi]

Chicago Police Department has had 8 consecutive years of increased police funding up until the Floyd protests. Yet Chicago is still a hot bed of murder and violent crime. They've wasted years worth of tax payer money while not achieving any significant results in reducing overall crime in Chicago. If they don't want to lose funding start showing results.

[Heathen Hammer]

Not the first time a big American city is turned into a third world slum by Democrat governing.

[Vanoi]

I didn't realize Democrats were the police officers failing to address violent crime in Chicago.

[tgoodenow]

Chicago Police Department has had 8 consecutive years of increased police funding up until the Floyd protests. Yet Chicago is still a hot bed of murder and violent crime. They've wasted years worth of tax payer money while not achieving any significant results in reducing overall crime in Chicago. If they don't want to lose funding start showing results.

According to Foxx, about 80 percent of those charged with gun crimes in 2016 pleaded guilty, with the remainder of the cases going to trial. Only about 30 percent of the defendants whose cases were decided by a judge in a bench trial were convicted, while juries convicted about 42 percent of the gun crime suspects whose cases were brought before them, Foxx told the editorial board.



"It's an embarrassing number," Foxx said.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/...725-story.html

WGN Investigates reviewed data on every felony gun case from two of the city’s most historically violent weekends: Memorial Day and Labor Day. Here’s what we found:

• A total of 118 adults were charged with felony weapons offenses.
• 87 percent were released on bond. The most anyone had to pay to get out of jail before trial was $5,000.
• 72 percent were released the same they day they were arrested, or the very next day.
• 30 percent walked out of jail without paying any money — they received I-Bonds.

https://wgntv.com/news/wgn-investiga...-in-gun-cases/

Probably because Chicago leadership can't be bothered to actually keep criminals locked up. Gun crime in Chicago has been a slap on the wrist offense for atleast a decade.

[Vanoi]

Articles don't explain why conviction rates are low or give really any reasoning why criminals are being so easily released on bond. Are they running out of money or room to house criminals? Is it just that easy to get bail in Chicago.

[Heathen Hammer]

I didn't realize Democrats were the police officers failing to address violent crime in Chicago.

So government has nothing to do with fighting crime in the area it is governing? Thats a very low energy whitewashing of Chiraq's government. Democrats are the ones responsible for that. They just suck at well, maintaining a functional government.

[tgoodenow]

Articles don't explain why conviction rates are low or give really any reasoning why criminals are being so easily released on bond. Are they running out of money or room to house criminals? Is it just that easy to get bail in Chicago.

Chicago bail reform allows non-violent offenders to get out with cheap or no bail. Technically being in possession of an illegal firearm is a non-violent offense, so they get out same day or next day. Lock up and prosecute persons in possession of illegal guns, and you will see illegal gun crime go down. There has also been a major reduction in felony drug offense prosecutions. Since most of the Chicago gun crime is related to the huge drug trafficking trade, getting major drug dealers off the streets would also reduce violent crime.

Chicago, like many major urban cities, is trying to reduce the revolving door of prisons. That is a commendable ideal, if done right. But going soft on gun crime and hard drugs isn't the answer.

[Cope]

Chicago's homicide rate fell for three consecutive years (a total of 35%) between the end of 2016 and the end of 2019. City leaders cited the hiring of "more police officers" as a relevant factor in explaining the decline. The number of homicides remained stable in the first quarter of 2020 before spiking after the lockdown and exploding in the aftermath of George Floyd's death. The city suffered its deadliest day in at least 30 years at the end of May.

[Love Mountain]

Chicago's homicide rate fell for three consecutive years (a total of 35%) between the end of 2016 and the end of 2019. City leaders cited the hiring of "more police officers" as a relevant factor in explaining the decline. The number of homicides remained stable in the first quarter of 2020 before spiking after the lockdown and exploding in the aftermath of George Floyd's death. The city suffered its deadliest day in at least 30 years at the end of May.

The full context.

"Chicago police are expected to announce another preliminary murder and shooting count on Tuesday night, the final hours of 2019. The numbers may change even after that — final counts will be released after an FBI audit is completed in the next few weeks.

Still, city leaders have expressed hope that efforts undertaken since 2016 — hiring more police officers, emphasizing community policing and making investments in social services and schools — are helping to lessen violent crime.

They also credit what they call data-driven policing. The department in recent years has created support centers where supervisors use information from many sources and technologies — including security cameras and gunshot detection systems — to learn where crimes are happening and where they are likely to occur.

“I think that all of those things working together — being on the ground, supporting vulnerable victims, supporting vulnerable communities — led to the declines that we saw this year, and particularly over the course of the summer,” Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot told CNN’s “New Day” on Monday."