Chauvin Attorney Blames Crowd At Scene Of George Floyd's Death

MINNEAPOLIS — The lawyer for former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin blamed the "growing crowd" for distracting the four officers who were at the scene of George Floyd's Memorial Day arrest.

Defense attorney Eric Nelson made the case in his opening statement on day one of Chauvin's murder trial Monday. The crowd caused the officers "to divert their attention from the care of Mr. Floyd to the growing threat in front of them," according to Nelson.

In a bystander's video of the incident, Floyd is heard pleading for his life, yelling "I can't breathe" while other onlookers told Chauvin — who had his knee on Floyd's neck for nine minutes and 29 seconds — to get off of him. A second officer — Tou Thao — ordered people to back away from the scene.

Chauvin Trial: Watch Livestream Day 2

Nelson also told jurors Monday that drugs and heart disease, not Chauvin, killed Floyd.

State prosecutors, however, say Floyd’s behavior in his final moments was not consistent with a drug overdose. In his opening statement, prosecutor Jerry Blackwell said that people dying from an overdose are "not screaming for their lives" as Floyd did.

"They’re not calling on their mothers. They are not begging, 'Please, please. I can’t breathe.'" Blackwell told jurors that Chauvin's "excess force" that lasted nine minutes and 29 seconds killed Floyd.

"You can believe your eyes that it's a homicide," Blackwell said after showing jurors video of Floyd's arrest.

How to watch the trial

For the first time in Minnesota's history, the public has access to a live broadcast of the trial. Watch a recorded video from day one of the trial here.