MINNEAPOLIS— Derek Chauvin, the police officer who was seen on video with his knee on the back of George Floyd’s neck before his death, has been arrested as of Friday, May 29.
The video, seen all around the globe, shows Chauvin, former police officer, pressing his knee into Floyd’s neck on Monday, May 25 as Floyd repeatedly said, “I can’t breathe.” Floyd later died.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (D) said in a news conference,
“Their voices went unheard, and now generations of pain is manifesting itself in front of the world,” Walz said.
Floyd’s death was captured by several witnesses who demanded officers let him stand as he continued to beg to be helped because he could not breathe. One of the witnesses was a 17 year old minor who recorded the incident. Floyd’s death was met by thousands of people who took to the streets in Minneapolis to protest police brutality. Some protests turned into buildings being set on fire.
Protests have continued since Tuesday, the day after Floyd’s death and have occurred across the Unites States with protestors demanding all four officers at the scene be arrested. Before this mornings arrest of Chauvin, the officers had all been fired.
According to Minneapolis City Council Vice President Andrea Jenkins, Floyd and Chauvin knew each other for many years because they worked security at the same night club, El Nuevo Rodeo on Lake Street.
Late Thursday, Governor Walz activated the National Guard Thursday to try and help calm the protests. In a Tweet, President Trump called the protesters “THUGS,” and also suggested they be shot if looting occurred.
“When the looting starts, the shooting starts,” the president wrote.
