How the Mpls Police Tried to Hide the Truth About Derek Chauvin
Has everyone forgotten what the Minneapolis Police Department first reported?
Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo’s testimony at the trial of Derek Chauvin has been said to be “unprecedented” and as “piercing the blue wall of silence.” There has been all kinds of speculation as to whether or not Arradondo’s testimony will inspire others to hold officers accountable.
Will this be a new era of policing, where police departments refuse to cover-up for the deadly behavior of members of their force? Will police be held accountable for breaching their duty to serve and protect? Will Black men and women be safer now?
I’m not so sure.
Arradondo testified that on the night of George Floyd’s murder (May 25th, 2020) he was alerted that there was video footage of Floyd’s death. He recounted that shortly before midnight, someone asked him, “Chief, have you seen the video of your officer choking and killing that man?” He said that he remembered the conversation “almost verbatim” (New York Times, April 5, 2021).
We’ve all seen the video taken by Darnella Frazier: The callous, cold stare of Derek Chauvin as he kneels on George Floyd’s neck for nine minutes and twenty-nine seconds. You can hear the crowd’s desperate pleas for mercy, the…
