George Floyd officer convicted of murder
Summary
- After less than a day of deliberation, jurors find Derek Chauvin guilty of all charges over George Floyd’s death
- The jury returned guilty verdicts of second degree murder, third degree murder and manslaughter
- Barack and Michelle Obama welcomed the verdict but warned ‘true justice’ is more than one trial
- President Joe Biden has called the Floyd family and will make remarks shortly
- The former police officer was filmed kneeling on Floyd for over nine minutes during his arrest last May
- The video footage led to protests in the US and around the world over police use of force against minorities
- It is rare that US police are convicted of murder and this high-profile trial has been seen as a watershed in race relations
- Chauvin’s defence argued that drugs and poor health caused Floyd’s death
- But the prosecution urged the jury to believe what they saw in the video
Boris Johnson: ‘I welcome this verdict’
The death of George Floyd sparked an outcry across the US, but it also set off mass protests around the world, including in UK cities like London and Birmingham.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is one of the first world leaders to react to the verdict in the trial of Derek Chauvin over Floyd’s death.
In a post on Twitter, Johnson wrote he was “appalled” by how Floyd died and is keeping the Floyd family in his thoughts.
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photos from Minneapolis
The crowd outside the court in Minneapolis has been growing since the verdict was announced about an hour and a half ago.
Here are some more images from the city, where people are still chanting, cheering and embracing.
Copyright: ReutersCopyright: EPACopyright: Reuters‘Change has come’
“God did it,” activist Eliza Wesley said through tears. “He did not fail us.”
Watch her response to the verdict in the video on BBC website
For more on this story and video go to: BBC
