US Attorney General after Floyd’s death: Excessive force and racism in the police force Boris Johnson becomes “Daily Mail” columnist

More than three years after the violent murder of African-American George Floyd in Minneapolis, the US Department of Justice has found “excessive” use of force and discrimination against minorities by the city’s police department. “George Floyd should be alive today,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said at a news conference Friday following a police investigation. The patterns and practices within the agency would have made his death possible. Officers exhibit a pattern of behavior that uses excessive force and discriminates against blacks, people with mental health problems, and other minorities.

Floyd’s death on May 25, 2020 during a brutal police operation sparked demonstrations against racism and police brutality across the United States. Videos show the officers pushing the unarmed man to the ground. White police officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee to Floyd’s neck for over nine minutes as Floyd begged him to take a breath and eventually passed out. Chauvin was sentenced to 22 years and six months in prison for manslaughter by a court in Minneapolis. He has already served that sentence. A federal court had sentenced him to an additional 21 years in prison.

Garland opened the police investigation about two years ago. It was a civil investigation separate from the Department’s criminal investigation into Floyd’s death. Garland said former police officer Chauvin had a history of using excessive force. It has also been found that police officers repeatedly failed to respond to people’s statements that they could not breathe. Instead, they said that a person who talks can also breathe. (sda/dpa)