AFP :
Jurors on Monday began mulling the fate of the white ex-Minneapolis policeman accused of killing African-American man George Floyd, a death that sparked a nationwide reckoning on racism and that prosecutors called a “shocking abuse of authority.”
“You must be absolutely fair,” Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill said in his final instructions to the 12-member jury hearing the case against former officer Derek Chauvin. “Consider and weigh the evidence and apply the law.”
Chauvin, 45, is charged with murder and manslaughter over Floyd’s May 25, 2020 death, which sparked protests against racial injustice around the world and has become a landmark test of police accountability in the United States.
Chauvin was captured on video kneeling on Floyd’s neck, as the latter was pinned facedown and handcuffed on the ground for more than nine minutes complaining, “I can’t breathe.”a
In his instructions to the jury, the judge touched on the significance of the case, which comes amid heightened tensions fuelled by other police killings.
“You must not let bias, prejudice, passion, sympathy or public opinion influence your decision,” Cahill said. “You must not consider any consequences or penalties that might follow from your verdict.”
Prosecutors, in closing arguments to the jury, which will be sequestered during deliberations, repeatedly showed the harrowing video seen by millions around the world.
“This case is exactly what you thought when you saw it first, when you saw that video,” prosecutor Steve Schleicher told the jury.
“You can believe your eyes,” Schleicher said. “It’s exactly what you knew, it’s what you felt in your gut, it’s what you now know in your heart.”
