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Medical examiner blames police pressure for Floyd's death

MINNEAPOLIS 鈥 The chief medical examiner who ruled George Floyd鈥檚 death a homicide testified Friday that the way police held him down and compressed his neck 鈥渨as just more than Mr. Floyd could take,鈥 given the condition of his heart. Dr.
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MINNEAPOLIS 鈥 The chief medical examiner who ruled George Floyd鈥檚 death a homicide testified Friday that the way police held him down and compressed his neck 鈥渨as just more than Mr. Floyd could take,鈥 given the condition of his heart.

Dr. Andrew Baker, the Hennepin County medical examiner, took the stand at the murder trial of former Officer Derek Chauvin for pressing his knee on or close to Floyd鈥檚 neck for what prosecutors say was as much as 9 1/2 minutes as the 46-year-old Black man lay on the pavement last May.

Asked about his finding that police 鈥渟ubdual, restraint and neck compression鈥 caused Floyd's heart to stop, Baker said that Floyd had severe underlying heart disease and an enlarged heart that needed more oxygen than normal to function, as well as narrowing of two heart arteries.

Baker said being involved in a scuffle raises adrenaline, which asks the heart to beat even faster and supply more oxygen.

鈥淎nd in my opinion, the law enforcement subdual, restraint and the neck compression was just more than Mr. Floyd could take by virtue of that, those heart conditions,鈥 the medical examiner said.

Other medical experts, including a leading lung specialist, have gone further, testifying that Floyd died of asphyxia 鈥 or insufficient oxygen 鈥 because his breathing was constricted as he lay on his stomach with his hands cuffed behind his back, his face jammed against the ground and Chauvin's knee on his neck.

Baker has not ruled asphyxiation as a cause of Floyd鈥檚 death. And at one point, he said he is not an expert on lack of oxygen because he doesn鈥檛 treat living people, and he would defer certain questions to experts on breathing.

Baker also said that based on his viewing of the video, he believed Chauvin鈥檚 knee was 鈥減rimarily on the back, or the side or the area in between on Mr. Floyd鈥檚 neck.鈥 And he said that in his opinion, the placement of Chauvin鈥檚 knee would not have cut off Floyd鈥檚 airway.

Chauvin, 45, is charged with murder and manslaughter in Floyd鈥檚 death May 25. Floyd was arrested outside a neighbourhood market after being accused of trying to pass a counterfeit $20 bill.

Bystander video of Floyd crying that he couldn鈥檛 breathe as onlookers yelled at the white officer to get off him sparked protests and scattered violence around the U.S.

Chauvin attorney Eric Nelson has argued that the now-fired officer did what he was trained to do and that Floyd's illegal drug use and underlying health conditions killed him. An autopsy found fentanyl and methamphetamine in Floyd's system.

Ted Sampsell-Jones, a law professor at Mitchell Hamline School of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota, said evidence about Floyd鈥檚 cause of death is shaping up to be the biggest weakness for prosecutors. He said that with Baker鈥檚 testimony, the jury is starting to see that the prosecution has been forced to distance itself from its own medical examiner.

鈥淚t could possibly raise a reasonable doubt about cause of death," he said.

However, Sampsell-Jones said the legal standard for establishing causation is quite low. The state has to show only that Chauvin鈥檚 conduct was a substantial contributing cause.

鈥淚f the state had to show that Chauvin鈥檚 conduct was the sole or even primary cause of death, the case would be in real trouble,鈥 he said.

In his testimony, Baker said that neither Floyd鈥檚 heart problems nor drugs caused his death. Under cross-examination, though, he agreed with Nelson that those factors 鈥減layed a role鈥 in the death.

A medical expert who testified Thursday said a healthy person subjected to what Floyd endured would also have died.

Nelson asked Baker whether he has certified deaths by fentanyl overdose at levels lower than that seen in Floyd鈥檚 blood, and Baker said yes. But Baker also noted that levels of fentanyl must be considered in the context of how long someone had used the drug, any tolerance built up to it, and what other substances may be involved.

The medical examiner said that he did not watch the harrowing video of the arrest before examining Floyd so that he would not be unduly influenced by what he saw.

鈥淚 did not want to bias my exam by going in with any preconceived notions that might lead me down one pathway or another," he said.

Other medical experts called as prosecution witnesses have likewise blamed Floyd鈥檚 death on the way he was pinned down on the ground.

Dr. Lindsey Thomas, a forensic pathologist who retired in 2017 from the Hennepin County Medical Examiner鈥檚 Office and did not work on Floyd鈥檚 case, testified earlier Friday that she agreed with Baker鈥檚 findings, but appeared to go further, saying the 鈥減rimary mechanism of death鈥 was insufficient oxygen.

She said she reached that conclusion mostly from video that showed Floyd struggling to breathe.

During cross-examination, Nelson noted that Floyd鈥檚 bigger heart needed more blood and was working hard in a moment of stress and adrenaline, and that one of his arteries had a 90% blockage.

The defence attorney pressed Thomas by posing a hypothetical question.

鈥淟et鈥檚 assume you found Mr. Floyd dead in his residence. No police involvement, no drugs, right? The only thing you found would be these facts about his heart. What would you conclude to be the cause of death?鈥 Nelson asked.

鈥淚n that very narrow set of circumstances, I would probably conclude that the cause of death was his heart disease,鈥 Thomas replied.

In response to another hypothetical posed by Nelson, she agreed that she would certify Floyd鈥檚 death as a drug overdose if there were no other explanations.

But during re-questioning, prosecutor Jerry Blackwell ridiculed the defence attorney鈥檚 hypotheticals.

鈥淎ren鈥檛 those questions a lot like asking, 鈥楳rs. Lincoln, if we take John Wilkes Booth out of this ...'鈥 Blackwell began, before Nelson objected.

For the first time, a seat designated for Chauvin鈥檚 family was occupied Friday, by a woman. She wasn鈥檛 immediately identified. Chauvin鈥檚 marriage ended in divorce in the months after Floyd鈥檚 death.

Also on Friday, Judge Peter Cahill called in a juror and questioned her about whether she had been subject to any outside influences. She replied that she briefly saw TV coverage with the sound off and said that her mother-in-law had texted her, 鈥淟ooks like it was a bad day鈥 but that she didn鈥檛 reply.

The judge allowed her to remain on the jury.

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Find AP鈥檚 full coverage of the death of George Floyd at: https://apnews.com/hub/death-of-george-floyd

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Webber reported from Fenton, Michigan.

Amy Forliti, Steve Karnowski And Tammy Webber, The Associated Press

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