George Floyd’s younger sibling tells court: ‘I miss my brother’
George Floyd’s younger sibling has testified “I miss my brother” as prosecutors prepare to rest their case against the ex-officer accused of murdering him.
After the state of Minnesota spent more than two weeks making the case against Derek Chauvin, his defence team will begin to present its case on Tuesday.
Mr Chauvin is on trial after he knelt on Mr Floyd’s neck during his arrest last May.
He has denied the charges.
Tensions are high in Minnesota after the fatal shooting of a 20-year-old black man by a white police officer in a suburb only 10 miles (16 km) away from the courtroom where Mr Chauvin’s trial is taking place.
Mr Chauvin’s trial has been closely watched. Footage of Mr Chauvin, a white man, kneeling on the neck of Mr Floyd, a black man, sparked global protests against racism and policing in the US.
What did Floyd’s brother say?
Philonise Floyd took to the stand as a “spark of life” witness, a circumstance by which the prosecution in a Minnesota trial can humanise the victim for the jury.
Mr Floyd, 39, remembered his brother as “a big mama’s boy” and “a leader to us in the household” as the court was shown old photos from their childhood.
He mused about their competitiveness as siblings: “Me and George played video games all the time. I finally beat him in a game and I was just so happy thinking about that.”
Through tears, the younger Floyd recounted how his brother had cried at their mother’s funeral and “didn’t want to leave the casket” because “he loved her so dearly”.
“I miss both of them,” he said.
What did the other witnesses say?
Two expert witnesses testified on behalf of the prosecution about their independent reviews of the Floyd arrest.
Dr Jonathan Rich, a Chicago-based cardiologist, told the court that, in his professional opinion, George Floyd did not die of a heart attack or drug overdose.
He noted his review of Mr Floyd’s medical records since 2018 indicated problems with hypertension, high blood pressure and struggles with drug addiction, but turned up no evidence of a previous or oncoming heart attack. He added the deceased had “an exceptionally strong heart”.
Agencies