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What happened when George Floyd was killed in police custody on May 25? In our new video, we reconstruct the incident in detail, using security footage, witness videos, documents and scanner audio (This video contains scenes of graphic violence.) https://www.nytimes.com/video/us/100000007159353/george-floyd-arrest-death-video.html
Our reconstruction of the killing, informed by analysis from experts, shows how the police violated their own policy and ignored Floyd’s well being during the fatal encounter. In this thread, I’ll break down what we found.
The incident begins at 7:57pm on Memorial Day evening, when 2 employees of the Cup Foods deli - both minors - confront Floyd for allegedly using a fake $20 bill to buy cigarettes. Following store policy, they call the police.
According to the 911 transcript, a Cup Foods employee tells the police that Floyd is “awfully drunk” and “not in control of himself.” Officers Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng arrive 7 minutes later.
Within 12 seconds of arriving at Floyd’s window, Lane has pulled his gun and ordered Floyd to put his hands on the wheel. He re-holsters the gun, and within a minute, he is pulling Floyd from the car.
At this point, we know 3 important things: The police believed they were responding to a man who was drunk and out of control, but we can see Floyd is handcuffed and not behaving violently; and he seems to be in pain and distress. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/31/us/george-floyd-investigation.html
The struggle between Floyd and the officers begins here, where we can see Floyd drop to the ground. According to investigation documents, Floyd is telling the officers that he is claustrophobic and can’t breathe, and he refuses to get into the car.
This is when Officers Derek Chauvin and Tou Thao arrive - 9 minutes into the arrest. Both have a history of citizen complaints, and Chauvin has been involved in 3 shootings, 1 of them fatal. He joins the struggle to force Floyd into the vehicle.
We don’t know why, but with Floyd already in the back seat, Chauvin pulls him through and out the other side onto the street, where Floyd is forced facedown. The first crucial witness video begins here, with 3 officers on top of Floyd's neck, torso and legs.
The first video soon ends, but the second, now infamous video filmed by 17-year-old Darnella Frazier begins. At almost the same moment, the officers call for “code 3” - emergency medical assistance. But for 7 minutes, they keep Floyd pinned to the ground.
. @rohinihaar and @policelawprof described the cops’ fatal actions to me: The compression of Floyd’s chest is making it impossible for him to breathe, the knee to his neck is making it worse, they aren’t checking his vitals, and none of them tries to stop the others.
This is just a partial transcript of 3 minutes while Floyd is pinned on the ground. The police had multiple warnings that they were doing something extremely dangerous to Floyd, and they never stopped.
Floyd tells the officers he can’t breathe 16 times in 5 minutes. According to investigation documents, Chauvin keeps his knee on Floyd’s neck for a total of 8 minutes and 46 seconds. For 3 of those minutes, Floyd is unconscious.
Even after an ambulance arrives, Chauvin keeps his knee on Floyd’s neck until paramedics tell him to remove it. The paramedics call for more help from the Fire Department but drive away, possibly to get away from the crowd
According to the Fire Department’s incident report, the police officers give them “no clear info” on Floyd’s status or location when they arrive 3 minutes later. This delays their ability to help the paramedics save Floyd.
It takes the Fire Department 5 minutes to find the ambulance, crucial time that is lost while Floyd is going into cardiac arrest. He’s pronounced dead at Hennepin County Medical Center just over an hour after the arrest began.
What does Floyd's death mean to his brother, Philonise, who called Floyd a “gentle giant” and a “people person," whose instinct was to defuse situations? Here's what Philonise told me.
Much appreciation for my amazing colleagues who worked tirelessly to put this together: @whitney_hurst @bottidavid @tiefenthaeler @DrewJordan_NYT @trbrtc @heytherehaIey and @robinnyc7.
And special thanks to Philonise Floyd, @rohinihaar, @policelawprof, Jared Brewington and Jamar Nelson for their time, expertise and assistance.
Our investigation is now available to watch on YouTube:
