In an emotional response to George Floyd’s family Sunday night, the Minneapolis police chief says in his mind, all four officers involved in George Floyd’s killing bear the same responsibility.
“Mr. Floyd died in our hands and so I see that as being complicit,” Chief Medaria Arradondo told CNN’s Sara Sidner. “Silence and inaction, you’re complicit. If there was one solitary voice that would have intervened … that’s what I would have hoped for.”
But no one intervened Monday evening as 46-year-old Floyd begged for his life while ex-Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin remained kneeling on his neck for nearly nine minutes.
Floyd’s death sparked protests across the country, with thousands echoing some of the man’s final words, “I can’t breathe.” Some of those demonstrations were peaceful, while others ended in flames, widespread looting, damages and hundreds of arrests as well as injuries.
The four police officers involved in his death were fired from the department Tuesday. Chauvin was charged Friday with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.Arradondo’s response Sunday came after Floyd’s brother asked the chief if he would work to get justice for Floyd. As the chief answered, Floyd’s brother wept.
Arradondo called the killing a “violation of humanity,” and said he didn’t need any more time than what he had to remove the officers from their duties.
“There are absolute truths in life; we need air to breathe,” the chief said. “The killing of Mr. Floyd was an absolute truth that it was wrong.””I did not need days or weeks or months or processes or bureaucracies to tell me what occurred out here last Monday was wrong,” he added.