An independent autopsy conducted regarding the killing of George Floyd found his death was a homicide and that he died of “asphyxiation from sustained pressure.” The autopsy said compression to Floyd’s neck and back as former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck and other officers knelt on his back led to a lack of blood flow to his brain and that he was “dead on the scene.” A statement by the family’s lead attorney Ben Crump said, “The independent examiners found that weight on the back, handcuffs and positioning were contributory factors because they impaired the ability of Mr. Floyd’s diaphragm to function.” Dr. Michael Baden, one of the pathologists who performed the independent autopsy said Floyd had no underlying medical problems that contributed to his death. “Police have this false impression that if you can talk, you can breathe. That’s not true,” said Baden.
An official autopsy released last week suggested that Floyd had underlying health conditions and “potential intoxicants in his system” that likely contributed to his death along with the police restraint. Chauvin was charged with third-degree murder, with a criminal complaint stating that Chauvin had is knee on Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds in total and 2 minutes and 53 seconds after Floyd was unresponsive. Floyd’s family called for Chauvin to be charged with first-degree murder and for the other officers present to be charged in his death.
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