When discussing the George Floyd incident, many people bring up the story of Tony Timpa. Both cases involve large men who had taken drugs and were pinned to the ground in a prone position, and neither was armed. However, the two stories differ in a major way.
Tony Timpa was 32 years old when he died in the custody of Dallas police officers in August 2016. Tony Timpa, like Floyd, was pinned face down to the ground, though Timpa was pinned for more than 14 minutes with an officer’s knee in the center of his back, not near his neck.
Timpa was a white man who was suffering from a mental health breakdown and had called 911 asking for help. His death was ruled as due to “excited delirium syndrome” attributed to cocaine found in his system and “physiological stress associated with physical restraint” by the Dallas County Medical Examiner.
A pathologist retained by Timpa’s family said he died from asphyxia, just as the private pathologist retained by George Floyd’s family ruled. Though the same police tactics were used on both men, the consequences were drastically different. There was no national uproar after Timpa’s death, no calls for reform, and no settlement for the family. The three Dallas officers were initially charged with misdemeanor deadly conduct charges, but the charges were later dismissed by the district attorney.
The key difference between their public reactions was race – Floyd was black, and Timpa was white.
When Timpa called 911, he was in a state of mental distress, and he was in need of aid and help. Instead, he received an excessive use of force from Dallas police officers and died a slow death. Like Floyd, Timpa was pinned face down and was held in that position for more than 14 minutes.
Dustin Dillard, one of the officers involved in the incident, was promoted. Dillard was elevated to the rank of Sr. Cpl., a role that involves training rookie officers.
On the evening of May 25, 2020, George Floyd was arrested in Minneapolis, Minnesota after a store clerk called the police to report suspected forgery. As the police arrived, Floyd reportedly swallowed a speedball, a combination of drugs including fentanyl and methamphetamine.
After resisting arrest for approximately 15 minutes, Floyd was eventually taken to the ground by police, where he subsequently died. An autopsy conducted on Floyd revealed he had fentanyl and methamphetamine in his system, as well as arteriosclerotic and hypertensive heart disease, hypertension, and sickle cell trait. Additionally, Floyd purportedly told officers that he had contracted COVID-19 and was still positive for the virus at the time of his arrest.
Dr. Andrew Baker, who conducted the official autopsy, stated that police restraint “in his opinion” was the primary cause of Mr. Floyd’s death, but he also noted drug use and heart disease as contributory factors.
It was determined the dose of fentanyl Floyd ingested was more than lethal. At the time of the arrest, the Minneapolis Police Department’s training materials included a protocol called the “Maximal Restraint Technique,” which involved officers placing a knee on a handcuffed subject’s neck. This exact restraint was used on Floyd.
In a side-by-side comparison between the Minneapolis police handbook and the picture of the officers retraining George Floyd, the images match up almost exactly.
The Daily Mail leaked full-length body camera footage which had been kept secure by Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison for months. This footage showed Floyd resisting arrest for some time before he dove out of the police car onto the ground. It also revealed Floyd repeatedly complaining about difficulty breathing even before he was taken down by the police.
Derek Chauvin was sentenced to a total of 40 years in prison for the death of George Floyd. Chauvin could serve a minimum of 10 years in prison before becoming eligible for parole. According to the New York Times, the judge noted that the sentence should “reflect the gravity of the offense,” and that Chauvin should “never again be allowed to pose a threat to public safety.” Therefore, it is likely that Chauvin will serve the full 40 years in prison, unless he is granted parole early.
According to a report from Business Insider in April, Federal agents planned to arrest Derek Chauvin in court and charge him with civil-rights violations if he were to be acquitted of murder.
George Floyd had a violent criminal history, according to a Minneapolis union chief. Floyd was arrested in 2005, 2007, and 2019 for a variety of offenses, including theft, assault, and drug use. In 2005, Floyd was arrested for robbery with a dangerous weapon and was sentenced to five years’ probation.
In 2007, he was arrested for domestic assault and was given a suspended sentence. In 2019, Floyd was arrested for possession of a controlled substance, which violated the terms of his probation. The union chief also noted that Floyd had multiple contacts with the police in the past and that he was known to have a history of violence.
The union chief stated that Floyd’s past criminal history should not be used to justify his death, but that it should be taken into account when considering the circumstances of his death. Had Floyd not been released from prison, like many others across the country due to activist District Attorneys, this would not have happened.
The following is from LawOfficer.com
1. The restraint used by Chauvin is permitted and trained by the Minneapolis PD.
Immediately following the incident, city and state officials tried to conceal the use of force policy that was in effect at the time. But the internet is forever. The use of force policy was found online and therefore could not be buried. The department’s use of force instructor testified that the technique used by Chauvin and the other officers was an approved technique. He also testified that officers are taught that if a subject can talk, he/she can breathe. Even the police chief had to concede to the technique on the stand. Along with the use of force instructor, a medical training instructor took the stand and testified that the members are trained to spot excited delirium.
2. There was zero strangulation.
We’ve been told that George Floyd was choked to death for close to a year now. The state attempted to claim that his carotid artery was interfered with which caused his death. They based all this on a witness who claimed to be an MMA fighter. This witness for some reason did not have to prove he was an expert in any field but the judge permitted his testimony. When later it was proven by the prosecution’s own witnesses that the carotid artery was never touched at any point, the state changed direction claiming that the pressure on his back caused him to asphyxiate.
Despite being an “expert witness” in the Chauvin trial, Donald Wynn Williams was reportedly seen at a Black Lives Matter protest breaking the back window of a police car, and later walking alongside a Black Panthers group notorious for intimidating nearby businesses. In September, Williams was arrested for assault after being accused of choking someone.
3. The state insisted that the best witness, Morries Hall, not testify.
Hall was seated in the front passenger seat of Floyd’s vehicle. Hall expressed concern that he could be charged with Floyd’s murder should he incriminate himself. Why? It has been argued that Hall sold Floyd the narcotics that he attempted to swallow as police approached. Those pills were later found partially chewed in the rear of the police vehicle with Floyd’s DNA and saliva on them. The pills tested positive for a mixture of fentanyl and methamphetamine.
The Fentanyl found in Floyd’s system contained up to four times the amount known to kill humans. Fentanyl essentially puts the lungs to sleep. So why didn’t Floyd look sleepy like a typical opiate overdose? Because he also had methamphetamine in his system. Methamphetamine spikes the heart rate. So while his heart and mind were racing, his lungs were coming to a complete stop. The state was so concerned that their very own Medical Examiner didn’t “play the game”, that they produced three medical expert witnesses to discredit him. This is unprecedented.
Dr. David Fowler, a former Maryland chief medical examiner said the fentanyl and methamphetamine in Floyd’s system, Floyd’s major heart issue, and possibly carbon monoxide poisoning from auto exhaust, were contributing factors in his death.
Fowler listed a multitude of factors or potential ones: Floyd’s narrowed arteries, his enlarged heart, his high blood pressure, his drug use, the stress of his restraint, the vehicle exhaust, and a tumor or growth in his lower abdomen that can sometimes play a role in high blood pressure by releasing “fight-or-flight” hormones.
Fowler said all of those factors could have acted together to cause Floyd’s heart to work harder, suffer an arrhythmia, or abnormal rhythm, and suddenly stop.
