The world is in pain following the death of George Floyd. The police officer who killed him, Derek Chauvin, has been charged with third-degree murder but Ben Crump, a civil rights attorney representing the Floyd family, is calling for him to be charged with first-degree murder after Floyd's cause of death was officially revealed.
An autopsy has been conducted on the body of George Floyd and independent medical examiners have determined the official cause of death for the 46-year-old unarmed man. It has been determined that Floyd died as a result of asphyxia from sustained forceful pressure, according to a press release from Crump's law office.
Dr. Michael Baden and Dr. Allecia Wilson found that Floyd's death can be ruled a homicide due to neck and back compression that cut off blood flow to his brain. After reviewing the evidence, it has also been determined that Floyd died at the scene.
"What we found is consistent with what people saw. There is no other health issue that could cause or contribute to the death," said Dr. Baden. "Police have this false impression that if you can talk, you can breathe. That’s not true."
Ben Crump, the lead attorney for the Floyd family issued a statement.
"For George Floyd, the ambulance was his hearse. Beyond question, he would be alive today if not for the pressure applied to his neck by fired officer Derek Chauvin and the strain on his body from two additional officers kneeling on him," said Crump. "Mr. Floyd’s death was a homicide by officers who taunted him while holding him down for more than eight minutes. And the officer who stood by doing nothing was a physical blue shield -- a living symbol of the code of silence."
Crump is calling for the arrests of the three other officers involved in Floyd's death, as well as harsher charges for Derek Chauvin.
