By Nicholas Kweyu
On Monday, Minneapolis Chief of Police Medaria Arradondo, testified that Chauvin’s conduct in the arrest of George Floyd was not in line with training. He said that it in fact breached regulations by showing “disregard for the sanctity of life”.
“Clearly when Mr. Floyd was no longer responsive and even motionless, to continue to apply that level of force to a person prone out, hands cuffed behind their back- that in no way, shape or forms is anything that is by policy,” said Arradondo. “It’s not part of our training and it’s certainly not part of our ethics or values.”
He also explained that officers are trained to handle people with dignity and respect. Moreover, they are also given basic first aid training such as using an inhaler to reverse an opioid overdose or handling a bleeding gunshot victim.
This was spurred by the prosecutor pointing out that Chauvin and the other officers had failed to provide medical assistance to Floyd when he stopped breathing.
Having been at home during the situation, Arradondo observed the arrest from the bystander video. From this, he could see how long Chauvin had kept Floyd pinned face down and that Chauvin had used more than the allowed “light-to-moderate” pressure. The chief therefore concluded that it was a breach of his department’s principles and values.
According to law experts who track police prosecutions, it is a highly unusual occurrence for a police chief to provide evidence against one of their own officers. It should, however, be noted that Arradondo, who is the city’s first black chief of police, fired Chauvin and three other officers the day after the arrest.
This testimony pokes holes in the defense’s theory that Chauvin’s actions during the arrest of George Floyd were based on and in line with the training he had received in his 19 years on the force.