3rd week of testimony in Derek Chauvin trial resumes today

A third week of testimony starts Monday in the Derek Chauvin murder trial in Hennepin County District Court, where the prosecution nears the end of making its best case that George Floyd was killed by the now-fired Minneapolis police officer late last spring.

District Judge Peter Cahill said late Friday that prosecutors will first call another among several medical experts Monday who will help the state explain why Floyd died on May 25 at 38th and Chicago.

Along with calling witnesses to buttress its case that Chauvin killed Floyd, the prosecution is on schedule to call a "Spark of Life" witness this week in order to give jurors a fuller and largely sympathetic view of Floyd as a son, brother, father and friend.

Once the prosecution rests, the defense gets its turn to prove several elements it has raised starting with attorney Eric Nelson's opening statement and consistently continuing throughout the cross examination of the stream of witnesses so far. Those points include that Floyd's health problems and drug use caused his death.

Before testimony was to resume Monday, the judge has set aside time for attorneys to discuss one or more legal issues outside the presence of the jurors.

One matter still to be settled from last week was whether a man in Floyd's SUV the night of his arrest should be compelled to testify.

Morries L. Hall has told the court that he intended to invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination should he be called as a witness. Through his attorney, Hall has told the court that testifying could expose him to potential charges of third-degree murder and other felony allegations.

Autopsy results have shown that Floyd had illicit drugs — specifically fentanyl and methamphetamine — in his body at the time. Floyd's girlfriend has testified that Hall provided Floyd with drugs during the month of his death.

The judge told defense attorney Eric Nelson to make a list of questions he would like to ask Hall and present them to the court. Should Cahill decide that Hall can be called as a witness, he might limit the breadth of questioning.

Chauvin is charged with second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the killing of Floyd. Three other fired officers who assisted in Floyd's 2020 arrest — J. Alexander Kueng, Lane and Tou Thao — are scheduled to be tried in August on charges of aiding and abetting murder and manslaughter.

On Friday, Hennepin County's chief medical examiner testified that Floyd's underlying heart disease contributed to his death a and that being held down on the street outside Cup Foods was "just more than Mr. Floyd could take."

Dr. Andrew Baker's testimony came after three other medical experts had already testified on behalf of the prosecution. Cause of death is a pivotal point of contention between prosecutors and the defense.

Baker's findings, based on his autopsy the day after the 46-year-old Floyd died, determined he died from "cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint, and neck compression."

He did not cite a lack of oxygen, or asphyxia, a cause found by three prior prosecution experts, including Dr. Lindsey Thomas, a medical examiner who worked on Baker's staff from 2013 to 2017.

"In this case, I believe the primary mechanism of death is asphyxia, or low oxygen," said Thomas, a medical examiner of 37 years who retired from Hennepin County.

Questioned further by prosecutor Jerry Blackwell, she said, "There's no evidence to suggest he would have died that night except for the interactions with law enforcement."

Star Tribune staff writers Rochelle Olson and Chao Xiong contributed to this report.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482