The trial of Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd has been underway over the past few weeks. It's been filled with emotional testimonies from family and friends of Floyd, as well as individuals who witnessed the incident take place and medical officials who observed the victim after Chauvin pressed his knee on Floyd's neck for nearly 10 minutes.
Steve Schleicher made his closing statements to the jury today where he explained that Chauvin's excessive force was the cause of George Floyd's death. He explained that Floyd made multiple cries for help were deliberately ignored, adding that the defendant "had to know" he killed the victim.
"The case is called the state of Minnesota vs. Derek Chauvin, not the state of Minnesota vs. the police," Schleicher said in an explanation that "there's nothing worse for good police than a bad police."
Schleicher told the jurors that they need to believe what they saw on the video while addressing the defense's argument that Floyd's death was caused by an overdose. The prosecution cited the medical examiner's ruling that it was a homicide.
"Make no mistake. [Chauvin's] actions were not policing. These actions were an assault," Schleicher added.
Scheicher also went through the methods that the jurors can find a guilty verdict for any of the three charges, adding that Chauvin's actions do not need to be proven as an intention to convict him of second-degree murder.
On Thursday, Chauvin invoked his right to not testify.
