An attorney for Kellie Chauvin, the wife of ex-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, has filed for a dissolution of marriage, according to a statement from the Sekula Family Law office.
Derek Chauvin was arrested Friday and charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the death of George Floyd.
A number of Houston police officers were hospitalized after protests over George Floyd’s death broke out in the city Friday, according to Houston Police Officer’s Union President Joe Gamaldi.
Gamaldi did not say how many officers had been sent to hospital, or what condition they were in.
CNN affiliate KTRK reported more than 60 people were arrested after the protests in Houston, according to Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo.
Acevedo also said there were reports of looting and buildings with broken glass.
Civil disobedience in Denver, Colorado, has prompted police to deploy pepper balls.
A large group pf people has gathered in the downtown area of the city, Denver Police Department public information officer Kurt Barnes said.
A Detroit police officer was taken to hospital after being struck by a rock thrown by protesters tonight, according to the city’s police chief, James Craig.
Another officer was on a bike when a protester in a car tried to run him over, Craig said. That person has been arrested.
So far, Detroit police have made nine arrests – seven of whom are from outside the city, according to Craig.
He added several police cars have been damaged.
Protesters took to the streets across America over the death of George Floyd on Friday night.
Some of the protests have been peaceful, while others have been destructive. Here are the cities where protesters gathered:
California: Los Angeles, Bakersfield, Sacramento, San Jose, Oakland, San Francisco
Colorado: Denver
Georgia: Atlanta
Illinois: Chicago
Iowa: Des Moines
Indiana: Indianapolis, Fort Wayne
Kentucky: Louisville (Related to the death of Breonna Taylor)
Louisiana: New Orleans
New York: New York City
Massachusetts: Boston
Michigan: Detroit
Minnesota: Minneapolis
Nevada: Las Vegas
North Carolina: Charlotte
Ohio: Columbus, Cincinnati
Texas: Dallas, Houston
Virginia: Richmond
Washington, DC
The College Football Hall of Fame near CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia, was significantly damaged during protests downtown Friday.
Glass was shattered and littered all over the sidewalk, video from CNN shows.
Many display cases were toppled over and building windows were broken.
In an emotional speech, rapper Killer Mike addressed George Floyd protesters directly at Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms’ news conference tonight.
Crying on camera, he continued: “I watched a white police officer assassinate a black man. And I know that tore your heart out.”
He concluded by thanking Mayor Lance Bottoms, saying he appreciated her telling the protesters to go home.
Watch:
Special Adviser Jessie Halladay with Louisville Metro Police Department said protests in the city are still escalating.
Halladay said while things started out peacefully this evening, the police department is anticipating property damage similar to what was seen during the protests in Louisville Thursday evening.
According to Halladay, there is a significantly larger number of people out protesting tonight, and the department believes a large portion of those out protesting are not from Louisville.
The police department has made two arrests, and several small fires have been set, including an attempt to set a fire at the Hall of Justice. Halladay said there was more graffiti and flag-burning happening Friday.
She said protesters are armed with sticks, bottles, bats, shields and guns, and have come well stocked with water and supplies.
No significant injuries have been reported, Halladay said.
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner urged citizens to go home in a tweet Friday night after protests flared in downtown over George Floyd’s death.
“For the safety of everyone, I am asking you to go home,” Turner tweeted.
Houston shut down access to the downtown area amid the protests, according to a statement from the city. A city alert urged citizens to avoid the downtown area.
“All highway and street access into and out of downtown is currently closed,” the alert read. “Those outside of downtown are being asked to avoid traveling near the area through the night.”
Police are positioned but not enforcing a citywide curfew as protesters continue to demonstrate in Minneapolis, CNN’s Sara Sidner reported.
About the curfew: Minneapolis and St. Paul are under a curfew instituted after days of protests marked by looting and arson.
Hear more:
Dallas police attempted to keep a protest peaceful in downtown on Friday night.
Police Chief Renee Hall joined officers in Dallas during the protest and spoke to one protester.
Tear gas was deployed after protesters confronted officers who arrived in force to try to keep the march moving.
Protesters have taken over portions of the Las Vegas Strip in Nevada on Friday night.
Aerials from CNN affiliate KTNV show a crowd of people peacefully walking down the middle of the street. There was no vehicle traffic.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department says it is creating a media staging area. CNN has reached out for more detail.
Bail for ex-Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin has been set at $500,000, according to the criminal complaint filed in the 4th Judicial District Court of Minnesota.
According to the document, there have been no conditions set for his release.
The document doesn’t indicate that Chauvin is out on bail, but it does say that if he does bond out, bail is set for $500,000.
The order of detention box is not checked because Chauvin was not ordered detained or remanded.
A crew for CNN affiliate WAVE was reporting live from Louisville, Kentucky, this evening when they were directly fired upon with what the reporter described as pepper bullets.
“I guess we were behind their line, I guess a little too close for comfort,” WAVE reporter Kaitlin Rust can be heard saying afterward.
Protests have erupted in multiple cities across the US over the death of George Floyd.
Floyd’s death this week sparked protests across the country after video emerged that shows the 46-year-old black man handcuffed and on the ground saying, “I can’t breathe,” as a police officer holds him down with a knee on his neck.
FBI Director Christopher Wray sent an email to employees Friday night saying people’s trust in law enforcement is eroded when officers fail to protect and serve everybody.
“Like most of you, I’ve watched the video images this week that ended in the death of George Floyd while in the custody of Minneapolis police officers. These images are profoundly troubling, to say the very least. And it is difficult to see our communities across the country in such understandable pain,” Wray wrote.
Here’s a portion of the director’s email:
Civil rights leader Andrew Young says he empathizes with the protesters in Atlanta in a late-night tweet today.
Young, the former US ambassador to the United Nations, went on to say: “Tonight and tomorrow night, we have to round up the reasonable young people who are part of that group and let them know that they have made their point and now they hurt their cause.”
Several people have been arrested after protesters threw rocks at Charlotte-Mecklenburg police station and its officers earlier today, according to tweets from Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.
Police issued a “dispersal order” after declaring the gathering of protesters “unlawful.”
Several windows of the police station were broken, police said.
Police said they are continuing efforts to de-escalate the protests over George Floyd’s death.
Police in Charlotte, North Carolina, were seen tossing tear gas into the streets where protesters were gathered.
Protesters were later seen helping each other with pouring milk into their eyes to wash out the tear gas.
A reporter from CNN affiliate WCCB posted the view below.
Protesters threw some sort of firecracker at the police holding a barricade inside the CNN Center.
The firecracker could be seen exploding while CNN’s Nick Valencia and his crew were live on air with CNN’s Chris Cuomo.
Watch:
Protesters in the nation’s capital breached the complex of the Treasury Department and spray painted the area, a law enforcement source tells CNN.
Some of the protesters were briefly detained by the US Secret Service but eventually let go.
Live images from the standoff inside the CNN Center shows several more police officers joining the barricade as protesters continue to throw objects from the Marietta Street entrance.
At least 18 police officers are currently holding the line with shields as the protest continues. Protesters are standing on the sidewalk just outside the entrance.
A man with a skateboard has repeatedly struck the glass next to the revolving doors in an attempt to break it.
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms was visibly angry at a news conference during the Atlanta protests Friday, telling protesters to “go home” after they became violent and a police officer was hurt.
She added: “If you care about this city then go home.”
Watch:
A smoke bomb appears to have been thrown at police among several other objects as they stood inside CNN Center, video from CNN crew Nick Valencia and Kevin Conlon shows.
A group of protesters stands outside the entrance on Marietta Street as police continue to have objects thrown at them.
One person was taken into custody by police and had what appeared to be a zip tie put around his wrists.
The Atlanta Police Department has a precinct inside CNN Center.
An officer was struck by an unknown object and is down in CNN Center, according to CNN’s Nick Valencia and Kevin Conlon, who are just inside the stairwell at the entrance of the building.
The crew moved inside behind police as tensions between protesters and police boiled over outside CNN Center.
On the Marietta Street side of the building, police are holding off protesters who have broken doors and windows and continue to throw objects.
Police just inside the building are currently engaged in a standoff with protestors who are assembled on the sidewalk along Marietta Street.
CNN’s Sara Sidner said protesters are being told that if they stay past curfew they will be arrested. The curfew in Minneapolis and Saint Paul began at 8 p.m. CT.
During her live shot, protesters could be seen running across the street when police officers raised their arm to throw smoke or gas.
Watch:
At least one police officer responding to a protest outside the CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia, was struck in the head with an object, according to CNN producer Kevin Conlon, who is on scene with correspondent Nick Valencia.
The protest continues with demonstrators facing off with officers wearing helmets and body coverings.
Protesters have thrown multiple objects, the CNN crew on scene reports.
Police are giving orders to disperse to a large group of protesters outside CNN Center in Atlanta, Georgia.
A large number of police officers in helmets are creating a blockade. They are facing off against protesters holding signs.
In video taken by CNN, officers were seen handing out zip ties to other officers.
Ben Crump, the attorney representing George Floyd’s family, said his family was “relieved” the officer who placed his knee on his neck was arrested but believed he should be charged with first-degree murder.
“The family does not trust the Minneapolis police department or anyone affiliated with the Minneapolis police department,” Crump said. “We understand they did the same thing to Eric Garner and we’re not going to allow that to happen this time.”
Watch:
The lockdown has been lifted at the White House and the United States Secret Service has reopened entrances and exits to the White House campus for both staff and media.
CNN’s Jim Acosta reported the protests have moved away from the White House and are now arriving on Capitol Hill.
Protesters peacefully kneeled in Minneapolis. They chanted “hands up don’t shoot” at a line of Minnesota State Police and National Guard members who were manning a checkpoint near the Precinct 3 police station that was set ablaze last night.
Watch:
Following protests in Houston over George Floyd’s death, Mayor Sylvester Turner said, “The police and community is not the enemy of each other,” in a tweet from his official Twitter account.
Hundreds of Houstonians marched from Discovery Green to City Hall Friday to protest police brutality and justice for Floyd.
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and Atlanta Police Department tweeted tonight that they plan to hold a news conference on the protests in the city.
“Mayor Bottoms and Chief Shields to address news media at Public Safety Headquarters concerning the demonstrations taking place Downtown,” the tweet said.
The Atlanta Police Department did not provide the time of the briefing.
CNN’s Nick Valencia described the scene at at the Atlanta protests where a fire could be spotted outside of the CNN Center.
Multiple police vehicles have had their windows broken in front of CNN Center.
Police have been responding to a large crowd of protesters that gathered outside of CNN Friday afternoon and were seen breaking windows of the building and spray painting the CNN sign.
The car fire outside of CNN Center was later extinguished.
Protesters and police clashed in various incidents Friday night outside the Barclays Center.
Some protesters threw water bottles and what appeared to be a bottle of paint at New York Police Department officers.
Officers tried to hold the barricade line as a handful of glass and plastic water bottles were thrown at them.
California Highway Patrol officers were hit by projectiles thrown by protesters on the freeway in San Jose, spokesperson Alicia Moreno confirmed to CNN.
Part of the 101 freeway was shut down, Moreno said.
Vehicles were vandalized during the protests, according to Moreno. There were no reported injuries.
CHP is focused on clearing the southbound 101 Freeway. The northbound direction has been cleared.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz signed an executive order Friday imposing an 8 p.m. CT (9 p.m. ET) curfew for the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul in the wake of fires, looting and protests through the Twin Cities after the death of George Floyd.
The curfew begins Friday and extends through the weekend, according to the order.
The mayors of each city have already imposed curfews for the same time.
As protesters arrived at Pennsylvania Avenue/Lafayette Park, the White House has been locked down.
The doors to the White House briefing room, where reporters have their offices have also been locked and Secret Service officers are not letting anyone off White House grounds.
There were members of the press corps around the press entrance but they were just cleared out and have been brought back to the White House press briefing room.
CNN has reached out to the US Secret Service for comment.
A video from CNN affiliate WGCL showed protesters mounting the CNN sign at the network’s headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia, and raising a Black Lives Matter flag.
One protester was seen using spray paint to write #Love on the sign and others were also seen writing on the sign.
Protesters also torched an American flag outside CNN Center in Atlanta and broke the glass near the entrance of the center.
Protesters appeared to be walking off the 101 freeway in San Jose, California, affiliate aerials show.
A large group of protesters were seen blocking the roads and smashing windows of cars on the freeway earlier today.
CNN is awaiting details from the California Highway Patrol.
A disturbance broke out in a crowd of hundreds of people protesting in Washington, D.C.
According to CNN’s Brian Todd who’s at the scene, the disturbance started when the police tried to escort a man from the protest.
The crowd is visibly riled, chanting “no justice no peace” and “black lives matter.”
“We don’t know exactly what set off the crowd,” Todd said. “The crowd is very intense.”
Hundreds of protesters are gathered in downtown Houston to protest the death of George Floyd.
The protest was organized by Houston’s Black Lives Matter group and images from CNN affiliate KTRK show hundreds of Houstonians marching from Discovery Green to City Hall to protest police brutality and justice for Floyd.
Many people were seen carrying signs that said “End police brutality” and “Black lives matter.”
KTRK reported that a woman was detained after pulling out a rifle at the protest, according to Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo who said she would be arrested for trying to start a riot during a peaceful protest. The report did not indicate that the firearm went off.
Tensions mount as thousands of people gather in Atlanta to protest the death of George Floyd.
Protesters can be heard chanting and seen facing a line of police near the CNN building.
Armored vehicles can be seen at the CNN center, and protesters could be seen running in fear of possible tear gas.
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said in a tweet today she encouraged residents to peacefully protest.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp shared Lance Bottoms tweet on his official Twitter account.
A group of protesters in downtown Minneapolis took a knee in front of state patrol and National Guard for 9 minutes for George Floyd. They raised their arms and chanted “I can’t breathe”
Former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin had his knee on Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds according to a preliminary report from the Hennepin County Medical Examiner.
Multiple protests are erupting across the country, including in Georgia, Kentucky, New York and Wisconsin, following the death of George Floyd, and are expected to continue through the weekend.
Floyd’s death, like those of Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor, have sparked outrage across the nation.
In New York City, hundreds of people protesting peacefully wearing face masks could be seen gathering outside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
In Kentucky, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer asked for protesters to be peaceful in his city, following Taylor’s death in March.
“These protests certainly reflect the anger, the hurt, the frustration, and the exhaustion of so many in our community in our country, sick of seeing story after story of black lives ending at the hands of law enforcement,” he said.
Fischer said Louisville would not tolerate violence and will protect the city and its residents from any attempts of violence or property damage.
He also reminded protesters that the city remains in the middle of pandemic, urging people to be safe with their health and the health of others.
Roseville Mayor Dan Roe said he issued an emergency declaration and established a curfew from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. local time for the next three days.
Roseville shares borders with both Minneapolis and St. Paul.
The curfew goes into effect at 5 p.m., the mayor’s tweet said.
Similar curfews have been ordered in St. Paul and Minneapolis following protests over George Floyd’s death.
Former Vice President Joe Biden called the charges brought against Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer involved in the death of George Floyd, “justified.”
Biden said if he were President now, he’d have ordered a “full blown” Justice Department civil rights probe to determine the culpability of all the officers involved in the incident.
“I don’t know all the facts,” Biden said. “The answer is it warrants a full-blown investigation and a civil rights investigation as well. Were I president now, I would have the Justice Department civil rights department investigating right now to determine culpability.”
Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive nominee of the Democratic Party for the 2020 election, told CNN’s Don Lemon he finds President Trump’s comments amid the protests “thoroughly irresponsible.”
“I think he’s thoroughly irresponsible. Thoroughly irresponsible. I mean, it is just absolutely — he talks like — I’m afraid I’ll say something I’ll regret. I just find him thoroughly, totally irresponsible,” Biden said.
He later added while pushed by Lemon: “This President steps across the line constantly.”
Watch here:
Hundreds of demonstrators and faith leaders gathered in New York City’s Foley Square in lower Manhattan to protest the death of George Floyd.
A large police presence could seen as protesters made their way across the Brooklyn Bridge with many of them chanting “Black Lives Matter.”
The march, organized by the NYC Justice League, urged people to be safe amid the coronavirus pandemic.
President Trump said he doesn’t want the looters in Minneapolis to “drown out the voices” of protesters following the death of George Floyd.
He said the memory of Floyd should “be a perfect memory.”
“The looters should not be allowed to drown out the voices of so many peaceful protesters they hurt so badly, what is happening and it’s so bad for the state and their great city,” he continued.
“I understand the hurt. I understand the pain. People have really been through a lot. The family of George is entitled to justice and the people of Minnesota are entitled to live in safety,” he said.
The city of Saint Paul imposed a curfew Friday beginning at 8 p.m. CT (9 p.m. ET), Mayor Melvin Carter announced at a news conference.
“I have signed an emergency order, declaring a state of local emergency around this situation in St. Paul right now, and also establishing a citywide curfew that will start at 8 o’clock p.m. tonight and then we’ll continue until 6 a.m. tomorrow morning,” Carter said.
He said the order exempts members of the media and workers returning home from work.
Carter said that the curfew would be enforced on Friday and Saturday nights.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio told protesters the city is “in the middle of a pandemic,” encouraging “peaceful protests,” which he said the New York Police Department will respect.
He added: “Please remember that we are in the middle of a pandemic. We have to do all we can to protect each other. Everyone out there has a responsibility.”
De Blasio said police have been given clear instruction “as always, respect peaceful protests.”
President Trump said Friday that he’s spoken to the family of George Floyd.
Trump said it was “a terrible, terrible thing that happened,” before adding that he’s ordered the Justice Department to expedite a federal investigation into the matter.
“It’s a local situation but we’re also making it into a federal situation and it’s a terrible thing. We all saw what we saw and it’s very hard to even conceive of anything other than what we did see,” Trump remarked, adding it “should never be allowed to happen, a thing like that.”
“I spoke to members of the family — terrific people. And we’ll be reporting as time goes by,” he continued.
Watch here:
The Los Angeles Police Department will take enforcement action on anyone who endangers fellow peaceful protesters, police officers, and the general public, the department said Friday.
Since the death of George Floyd, large crowds of protesters have been gathering in Los Angeles, particularly near downtown Los Angeles where the LAPD headquarters is located.
Demonstrators were seen on the 101 freeway blocking roads and attacking California Highway Patrol cruiser vehicles on Wednesday. The protests continued for a second night in front of the LAPD headquarters on Thursday.
“We stand with our communities and rebuke any instance of police brutality as well as acts of violence or property damage,” LAPD Chief Michael Moore said.
During his daily news briefing today, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker was asked by a reporter if he had a message for the President following his tweets concerning Minneapolis, the devastation that happened there and the arrest of the officer.
He continued: “His tweets, his reaction, his failure to address the racism that exists in America, his stoking the flames in sometimes subtle and sometimes not so subtle ways is completely unacceptable. It’s reprehensible in fact, and I’m, I’m, you know, I’m outraged by what he does in response to these situations.”
He added that there is “so much that we need to accomplish in this country but especially we need to address the underlying racism that clearly exists.”
The FBI requested the public’s help today for photos and videos surrounding the death of George Floyd.
Floyd’s death this week sparked protests across the country after video emerged that shows the 46-year-old black man handcuffed and on the ground saying, “I can’t breathe,” as a police officer holds him down with a knee on his neck.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey is imposing a nighttime curfew throughout the city beginning at 8 p.m. CDT tonight that will extend through the weekend and last until 6 a.m., according to a proclamation from the mayor’s office.
The resolution forbids anyone besides specified public safety personnel and other essential workers from being in public places from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. CDT (9 p.m. to 7 a.m. EDT) Friday and Saturday nights.
The announcement follows days of protests that have gripped the city over the death of George Floyd.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said he regrets not addressing the George Floyd death at a news conference, saying he was focused on Covid-19 updates.
DeWine called the Floyd video “horrific,” and said that he cannot begin to imagine what African American families feel about the video. DeWine said he supports protesters’ right to assemble but asks Ohioans to do it peacefully.
“Protests expressing outrage are not only understandable, but they are also appropriate,” he said at a news conference Friday. “I ask my fellow Ohio citizens today as you gather in protest in the coming days regardless of the issue please do so peacefully. We must not fight violence with more violence. When protests turn violent lives are put at stake.”
DeWine said he did not have an estimate for damage caused to the Ohio Statehouse during the Floyd protests Thursday night.
DeWine said he anticipates more protests in the coming days in cities throughout the state.
The combined effect of George Floyd being restrained by the police, along with his underlying health conditions and any potential intoxicants in his system, “likely contributed to his death,” according to the criminal complaint for former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin.
Floyd had underlying health conditions, including coronary artery disease and hypertensive heart disease, the complaint said, citing a preliminary autopsy conducted by the Hennepin County Medical Examiner.
Chauvin had his knee on Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds in total, and 2 minutes and 53 seconds after Floyd was unresponsive, the complaint said.
The complaint noted that police are trained that this type of restraint with a subject in a “prone position is inherently dangerous.”
Floyd’s autopsy also found “no physical findings that support a diagnosis of traumatic asphyxia or strangulation.”
The autopsy was included in the criminal complaint released by the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office in the arrest of Chauvin.
Chauvin has been charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter, according to Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman.
President Trump didn’t mention the protests happening in Minneapolis and across the US during his news conference at the White House this afternoon.
Instead, Trump announced that he’s terminating US relations with the World Health Organization.
Trump did not take questions from reporters.
The news conference comes hours after Twitter flagged Trump’s tweets about the protests– that suggested shooting looters — saying it violated the platform’s rules.
Twitter affixed a warning label to tweets, marking the first time such action has been taken against the accounts. The tweet is now hidden by a notice from Twitter –– but is still viewable.
CNN’s Jim Acosta reports from the White House:
In his first comments on the death of George Floyd, Attorney General William Barr said, “The video images of the incident that ended with death of Mr. Floyd, while in custody of Minneapolis police officers, were harrowing to watch and deeply disturbing.”
Barr noted that the state prosecutor has been conducting an investigation looking into whether criminal charges under state law are appropriate, according to a statement.
Barr noted that “on a separate and parallel” track, the Justice Department, including the FBI, “are conducting an independent investigation to determine whether any federal civil rights laws were violated. Both state and federal officers are working diligently and collaboratively to ensure that any available evidence relevant to these decisions is obtained as quickly as possible.”
Officials have said the Justice Department is conducting the investigation.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said the decision to charge former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin is an “essential first step.”
Frey went on to characterize what has happened in Minneapolis as “bigger than any one city and any single event.”
“For our black community who have, for centuries, been forced to endure injustice in a world simply unwilling to correct or acknowledge it: I know that whatever hope you feel today is tempered with skepticism and a righteous outrage,” Frey said.
Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman charged Chauvin with third degree murder and manslaughter earlier today.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension arrested former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chavin in Minneapolis, a statement said.
“Agents took Mr. Chauvin into custody in Minneapolis,” the statement said.
Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman announced today that Chauvin was charged with third degree murder and manslaughter.
Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman, speaking at a news conference, said today’s charges against the former Minneapolis police officer, who was seen in a video with his knee on George Floyd’s neck, “is by far the fastest we’ve ever charged a police officer.”
This comes after ex-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was taken into custody.
The Hennepin County Attorney’s office has reviewed witness accounts, video of the incident and other evidence that led to Chauvin’s arrest, Freeman said.
They have not yet arrested or charged the other three officers involved but are continuing to investigate the evidence, Freeman said.
See more from the Hennepin County prosecutor:
The former Minneapolis police officer seen in a video with his knee on George Floyd’s neck has been charged with third degree murder and manslaughter, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said at a news briefing this afternoon.
The officer, Derek Chauvin, was taken into custody by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension as fires continued to burn from violent protests overnight as demonstrators demanded justice for Floyd.
New video posted on social media appears to show three Minneapolis Police Department officers kneeling on George Floyd during his arrest.
Previous video from eyewitness Darnella Frazier shows Floyd being kneeled on by one officer — Derek Chauvin. The new video, from a different angle, appears to show Chauvin and two other officers kneeling on Floyd.
“I can’t breathe, man,” Floyd says in the new video. “Please, let me stand. Please, man.”
This new video appears to have been taken before the Frazier video.
CNN has reached out to the Minneapolis Police Department for comment, and to verify its authenticity, but has not received a response.
CNN has also reached out to Floyd family attorney Ben Crump about the video but has not yet received a response.
CNN has not been able to locate the person that took the video. NBC News has previously reported an 18 second portion of the video; CNN has obtained a minute long version of that video.
Joe Biden addressed the killing of George Floyd and the current situation in Minnesota, saying he spoke with Floyd’s family.
Biden added that Floyd’s killing is, “The latest addition to the endless list of stolen potential wiped out unnecessarily.”
He took a veiled swipe at President Trump. “This is no time for incendiary tweets. It’s no time to encourage violence. This is a national crisis, and we need real leadership right now.”
Watch more of Biden’s address here:
Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar called the arrest of former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin the “first step towards justice.”
“Police officer Derek Chauvin has been arrested and is in custody for the murder of George Floyd. The first step towards justice,” Klobuchar tweeted.
The former Minneapolis police officer seen in a video with his knee on George Floyd’s neck before the unarmed black man died this week was taken into custody Friday by state authorities, according to John Harrington, commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Public Safety.
The officer, Derek Chauvin, was taken into custody by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension as fires continued to burn from violent protests overnight as demonstrators demanded justice for Floyd.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz pleaded for order Friday morning following a night of fiery unrest as protesters demanded justice for George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died this week after Minneapolis officers arrested him.
NFL free agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick has announced a legal defense initiative that offers assistance to people arrested while protesting George Floyd’s death in the Minneapolis, Minnesota, area.
The Know Your Rights Camp Legal Defense Initiative says it has arranged for top defense lawyers in the city to provide legal protection for those fighting injustice.
The Kaepernick-funded Know Your Rights Camp tweeted the news saying:
Nekima Levy Armstrong, a civil rights attorney in Minneapolis, called for justice for George Floyd whose death, she said, is reflective “of decades of police abuse and neglect of the African-American community.”
Armstrong called Floyd just the “latest victim, in a series of black men who have been slain by Minneapolis Police Department officers and not one has been held accountable for killing an African-American person.”
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said President Trump’s tweets – that suggested shooting looters – were “just not helpful.”
“I did speak to the President. At that point in time, it was in the process where I said we were going to assume control of this and it was unnecessary,” Walz said.
He said that state officials are “doing everything we can.”
“In the moment where we’re at, in a moment that is so volatile, anything we do to add fuel to that fire is really, really challenging,” Walz said.
Some context: Twitter flagged Trump’s tweets saying it violated the platform’s rules.
The tweet is now hidden by a notice from Twitter –– but is still viewable.
“This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules about glorifying violence. However, Twitter has determined that it may be in the public’s interest for the Tweet to remain accessible,” Twitter said in the notice.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell had strong words for prosecuting the police in the incidents in Minneapolis and Louisville, saying “if you see what happened, [they] look pretty darn guilty.”
The GOP leader said violent protests in Minneapolis and Louisville – both in response to deaths of black people at the hands of police officers – “really needs to stop” and “this senseless violence in reaction to this is not helpful.”
McConnell declined to comment Friday on a tweet from President Trump in which the President called protesters in Minneapolis “thugs” and warned “when the looting starts, the shooting starts. The message was flagged by Twitter for “glorifying violence.”
“I generally don’t comment on the President’s tweets,” McConnell told reporters at a press event in Kentucky.
“I can speak for myself,” the senior senator from Kentucky said.
McConnell went on to call for justice for George Floyd, who was killed on May 25 in Minneapolis, and Breonna Taylor, who, on March 13, was killed after officers forced their way inside her Louisville home and exchanged shots with her boyfriend, according to a lawsuit filed by her mother.
“These events, which the facts around them are pretty obvious are absolutely horrendous, and you can understand the outrage and reaction to witnessing events like this. They need to be thoroughly investigated. And if prosecution is appropriate and I’m sure sounds looking at both these cases like that would be the case. Justice needs to be done. I’ve always been a supporter of demonstrations, but they need to be peaceful. And this senseless violence in reaction to this is not helpful to anyone and I hope it will stop,” he said.
Minnesota’s National Guard will continue to operate in the city for as long as necessary, General Jon Jensen, the Adjutant General of Minnesota’s Army National Guard, said Friday.
The National Guard will provide support to state police and local law enforcement for as long as the governor deems necessary, Jensen said.
The Guard conducted several missions throughout the night including escorting the Minneapolis Fire Department (MFD).
The night before, rocks and other projectiles were thrown at responding vehicles, MFD said in a statement Thursday.
The National Guard was still securing Minnesota police’s third precinct on Friday morning to allow crews to “come in and begin the cleanup of that area,” which was on fire overnight, Jensen said.
John Harrington, commissioner of Minnesota’s Department of Public Safety, said he is putting together a “unified command” of several different law enforcement and public safety entities to prepare for more protests today and this weekend.
Harrington said he is going to do this “the right way” by keeping in mind the oath to protect communities.
“We are fully confident that we can do that mission and that we can do it while still ensuring that the constitutional rights of those who need to have their voices heard and who need to freely assemble can be protected,” he said.
Former President Barack Obama discussed the “anguish” black Americans are feeling around the country following the death of George Floyd, according to a statement he released on Twitter.
Obama discussed the common getting “back to normal” refrain uttered following deaths like these and how it’s not enough.
Read Obama’s full statement below:
John Harrington, commissioner of Minnesota’s Department of Public Safety, called the death of George Floyd a murder today during a news briefing.
Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul released a statement on the death of George Floyd in which he called the act “torture and murder, under color of law.”
“Justice demands that those involved in this depraved crime be prosecuted to the full extent of the law,” he added.
Read the tweet:
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said state officials are committed to “long-term change.”
“I want to be clear. That if the message was this situation with Mr. Floyd is intolerable, absolutely unacceptable, and must change, that message has been sent and received, as well,” Ellison said at a news briefing with the governor on Friday.
Ellison said he is forming a working group “on preventing and reducing deadly force encounters with police.”
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz issued a public apology to CNN for the arrest of a reporter and crew in Minneapolis this morning.
Walz said he takes “full responsibility” for the incident.
“I’m a teacher by trade and I have spent my time as governor highlighting the need to be as transparent as possible and have the press here ––I failed you last night in that. And it does not escape me that we are here on the catalyst that lit this spark by what happened with a police detainment of George Floyd and the idea that a reporter would have been taken while another police action was in play is inexcusable,” Walz continued.
Walz said the incident was “unacceptable” and said the access and security of journalists is a priority to him.
“The protection and security and safety of the journalists covering this is a top priority. Not because it’s a nice thing to do. Because it is a key component of how we fix this,” Walz said.
Watch below:
Gov. Tim Walz said he has an expectation that “swift” justice will be carried against the police officers involved in the death of George Floyd.
All four officers involved in the death of George Floyd have invoked their Fifth Amendment right against self incrimination, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman told CNN following a news conference Thursday afternoon.
Freeman said he looking at the Freddie Gray case for guidance in the Floyd case and wants to have the full picture of the case before moving forward.
“So, Minnesotans, your pain is real. The chapter that’s been written this week is one of our darkest chapters,” Walz said.
Watch:
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz expressed his concern over the protests that have rocked his state and the black community which, he said, is “hurting beyond words.”
Walz went on to directly mention George Floyd and Philando Castile who, in July 2016, was shot and killed by a police officer in Falcon Heights, Minnesota.
“Much like we failed to hear George Floyd as he pleaded for his life as the world watched, by people sworn to protect him, his community, our state. Philando Castile silenced, unheard, so many brothers and sisters dying in the streets, unheard, now the pain is manifesting itself around the world and the world is watching,” Walz said.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is holding a news conference to address the state’s response to protests and safety concerns following the death of George Floyd. Department of Public Safety Commissioner John Harrington will also be attending.
The governor signed an executive order Thursday activating the Minnesota National Guard after protests and demonstrations erupted throughout Minneapolis and St. Paul.
ESPN host and Los Angeles Times columnist LZ Granderson became emotional when discussing his son and the protests over George Floyd’s death.
“[My son] recently just graduated from college. And I can’t tell you the fear that — the fear that crawls across my body when he leaves the house, still,” Granderson said, his voice cracking, in an interview on CNN.
He discussed on air a column he wrote yesterday in the Los Angeles Times where he describes the anxiety he lives with as a black man in America.
Granderson also addressed the arrest of Omar Jimenez, a black Latino CNN reporter, in Minneapolis while Jimenez and his crew were covering the Floyd protests.
“When you have darker skin, there is no insulation for this type of behavior, and so my heart was just broken watching this young man have to deal with that. It reminded me of my own experiences,” he said.
Watch more:
President Trump tweeted about the unrest in Minneapolis for the first time this morning since his late-night tweet, threatening that “when the looting starts, the shooting starts.” That tweet was flagged by Twitter as violating the platform’s rules.
Trump said in his latest tweet that the National Guard has “arrived on the scene” in Minneapolis and is “fully prepared.”
Per a tweet late Thursday evening, the Minnesota National Guard activated more than 500 soldiers to the St. Paul, Minneapolis, and surrounding communities.
The Ohio Statehouse was damaged by protestors late Thursday evening, the Ohio Department of Public Security confirmed to CNN on Friday morning.
According to CNN affiliate WBNS, hundreds of protestors gathered in downtown Columbus late Thursday evening “in solidarity to show support” following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Here’s what the scene was like: The protesters then “began to break the windows of local businesses, bus stops and even the windows and front doors of the Ohio Statehouse,” according to the affiliate.
A few protestors on the statehouse grounds “began to commit acts of vandalism, damaging some windows, light fixtures and doors,” the Ohio Department of Public Security said in a statement.
Officers were eventually able to disperse protestors from the grounds. One protester who entered the statehouse through a broken window was arrested after he fled out the back of the building, DPS said.
CNN has reached out to the Columbus Division of Police, as they are handling all charges related to this protest.
All windows and doors damaged in the incident have since been secured, according to DPS, and an investigation to document property damage will be conducted.
Columbus mayor reacts to protests: Mayor Andrew Ginther reacted to the protests happening in the city in a tweet Thursday and asked residents to “remain peaceful in their actions.”
Read the tweet:
Melania Trump has tweeted her first public words about the protests in Minnesota, and her condolences to the family of George Floyd.
She says the country “allows for peaceful protests, but there is no reason for violence.”
This comes after President Donald Trump’s tweet last night about the protests was flagged by Twitter as violating the platform’s rules.
Read the tweet:
The death of George Floyd has ignited protests in Minneapolis and at least six other cities across the US. Some of the protests have been peaceful, while others have been destructive.
Minneapolis has been the epicenter of the protests, where state police in body armor and riot gear lined up overnight near the city’s police precinct that was set ablaze by protesters.
Here is a snapshot of where protests have occurred so far:
Some of these protests may not be active at this moment. We continue to monitor the latest on the ground.
The following protest photos were taken in Denver, Memphis and Columbus Thursday evening:
It’s a little past 9:00 a.m. in Minneapolis, Minnesota where protests have been happening for several days following the death of an unarmed black man earlier this week in city officers’ custody.
If you’re just tuning in, here is what you need to know to get up to speed this morning.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear decried the protests in Louisville on Thursday night over the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor.
Seven people were shot in downtown Louisville, the mayor said in a video message on Twitter. Property damage also was reported after peaceful demonstrations took a turn, Louisville Metro Police Department officials said during a news conference.
The protests in Louisville happened as other demonstrations have erupted around the US over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis after a police officer was seen kneeling on his neck.
More on Taylor’s death: Taylor was killed after officers forced their way inside her home and exchanged shots with her boyfriend, according to a lawsuit filed by her mother.
The officers were executing a search warrant in a narcotics investigation, the Louisville Metro Police Department has said, when they entered Breonna Taylor’s apartment just before 1 a.m. on March 13.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison told CNN this morning that he expects “there will be charges” against the four Minneapolis officers involved in George Floyd’s death. He added that he hopes they will be announced “soon.”
Ellison said officials are making sure they have “a very strong case” before charges are announced.
“Everybody believes that this is a violation of Mr. Floyd. And I believe that everybody wants to see these charges filed as soon as they can be. But again, I do want to say we have seen cases that seem so clear go south,” Ellison said.
Ellison said that “unfortunately, it is taking more time than any of us want.”
He added that he sympathizes with everybody “who’s demanding charges.”
The four police officers were fired earlier this week, but no charges have been filed. Floyd’s family said they want the officials to be charged with murder.
The US Attorney’s office in Minnesota and the FBI’s Minneapolis field office said they are conducting “a robust criminal investigation” into the circumstances surrounding Floyd’s death.
At least 72 people were arrested during a protest in New York City last night, NYPD Police Chief Terence Monahan told CNN affiliate WPIX 11 Friday morning.
Five people were arrested for felonies for “assaults on our police officers,” 33 people were arrested for misdemeanors that range from “obstruction of government, to administration to resisting arrest” and 34 people were arrested for “various violations, mainly disorderly conduct, blocking streets,” Monahan said.
“A few of our cops got injured,” Monahan added.
Two officers suffered a concussion, one had a garbage can thrown at him and another was thrown to the ground and taken to the hospital.
Two deputy inspectors were also injured, he said. One suffered shoulder and back injuries after being thrown to the ground and another was punched in the face, but was “alright,” Monahan said.
Responding to a video that shows an NYPD officer using a baton on protestors, Monahan said, “our goal was to take the trouble makers out of the group.” He said the police department had to arrest individuals that were causing “mayhem.”
When a journalist is arrested at a protest, the free and fair gathering of the news is arrested, too.
That’s one of the reasons why these infringements on press freedom are relatively rare in the United States — and why Friday’s brief arrest of a CNN crew in Minneapolis was so egregious.
Live video from correspondent Omar Jimenez and the CNN crew showed that they were not interfering with law enforcement.
When a journalist is arrested at a protest, the free and fair gathering of the news is arrested, too.
CNN journalist Josh Campbell is also on the ground in Minneapolis, not far from where CNN reporter Omar Jimenez and his team were arrested by officers early this morning. They have since been released.
Speaking to Campbell earlier, CNN anchor John Berman pointed out that Jimenez is black and latino, and Campbell is white, though he said he did not know whether race played a factor in Jimenez’s arrest.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz called the arrest unacceptable and totally inadvertent.
The Minnesota State Patrol released this statement on Twitter: “In the course of clearing the streets and restoring order at Lake Street and Snelling Avenue, four people were arrested by State Patrol troopers, including three members of a CNN crew. The three were released once they were confirmed to be members of the media.”
CNN broadcast shows Jimenez clearly displaying his CNN badge before he was restrained.
Laura Coates, CNN’s legal analyst, said the arrest of CNN reporter Omar Jimenez is “why people don’t have faith in what might happen in Hennepin County.”
Jimenez, who identifies as both black and Latino, was arrested early on Friday while reporting live on the protests in Minneapolis. Coates pointed out that Josh Campbell, another CNN journalist on the ground in Minneapolis, was treated very differently.
Coates added: “Four officers who were involved in the killing of an unarmed black man whose body was on the street and handcuffed behind his back, they have not been arrested since Monday or charged with any crime. Omar Jimenez shows a credential, a camera is running, his crew and producers are saying who they are and they were arrested sooner. Optically, this is why people don’t have faith in what might happen in county.”
CNN reporter Oscar Jimenez’s journalism career began roughly eight years ago.
Jimenez, whose mother is black and father identifies as Colombian, worked in Baltimore at WBAL-TV before joining CNN in 2017.
In Maryland, he covered the trials for the officers charged in the death of Freddie Gray, was the lead story on the station’s Emmy award-winning special on opioids, and published pieces on opioid influence in the state and the fight against child sex trafficking.
Jimenez first worked with CNN’s Newsource, based in Washington, DC.
While at Newsource, Jimenez reported from the ground in Paris in the aftermath of the Notre Dame Cathedral fire, from Las Vegas just hours after the mass shooting there, the deadliest in modern American history and from Florida and Texas during the 2017 hurricanes.
He graduated from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, where he also played on the varsity men’s basketball team. While in school, Jimenez was also an intern with CNN.
Learn more about Jimenez’s career below:
CNN’s reporter Omar Jimenez, who was released from custody in the past few minutes after he was earlier arrested live on air, said he was comforted by the fact that at least people could see what was happening.
CNN correspondent Omar Jimenez and his crew have been released from police custody.
Jimenez, along with producer Bill Kirkos and photojournalist Leonel Mendez, were arrested shortly after 6 a.m. ET live on CNN air, while reporting on the protests in Minneapolis.
The team was released from the Hennepin County Public Safety facility in downtown Minneapolis just a few minutes ago.
CNN president Jeff Zucker spoke with the governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz on Friday morning, following the arrest of CNN’s team in Minneapolis,
Walz said he “deeply apologizes” for what happened and is working to have the CNN team released immediately.
Walz described the arrests as “unacceptable,” said CNN’s team clearly has the right to be there, and said he wants the media to be in Minnesota to cover the protests.
Watch:
A CNN crew has been taken to custody amid protests in Minneapolis early on Friday morning.
Here is how the situation unfolded:
At 5:09 a.m. local time, CNN correspondent Omar Jimenez was reporting live on an arrest happening in the area near a city police department precinct that protesters had burned and officers had abandoned overnight.
About a block away, a fire was burning at a different, four-story building that had contained restaurants. He was standing in front of a long line of police officers in riot gear.
Shortly after his crew captured the arrest on camera, the police officers moved towards Jimenez and his crew, asking them to move.
Jimenez told the officers he and his three colleagues were part of the same CNN crew and calmly identified himself with his CNN identification card.
Jimenez was then heard as telling the officers:
At 5:11 a.m., two officers in riot gear stepped up to Jimenez and said “you are under arrest.”
Jimenez calmly asked why was he under arrest.
“Why am I under arrest, sir?”
He was then handcuffed and led away by the police, as the camera kept rolling.
Shortly after that, CNN photojournalist Leonel Mendez who was with Jimenez said he and the rest of the crew were also being arrested.
The camera then showed Jimenez’s producer Bill Kirkos being handcuffed taken into custody.
Shortly after that, the camera, which was still rolling, was taken away from the crew.
Charles Ramsey, a veteran police chief who led departments in Philadelphia and Washington, DC and who now serves as a CNN law enforcement analyst, said the arrest of the CNN crew in Minneapolis “did not make any sense.”
“The state police are going to have a lot to answer for with this arrest here,” he said. “He’s standing there, he identified himself. You can see his credentials. Just move him to where you want him to be.”
Ramsey added that the there was “no way something like that should occur.”
“I don’t know where the person in command of that platoon is. But that’s an individual who is definitely not taking charge,” he added.
Watch:
CNN journalist Omar Jimenez has been taken into police custody during a live broadcast at the site of the protests in Minneapolis, after clearly identifying himself to officers.
Jimenez’s crew, including a producer and a camera operator, were also placed in handcuffs.
The CNN camera was also taken into custody and continued to record as the crew was handcuffed, with police seemingly unaware that the camera was still on.
Watch the video here:
Dramatic scenes have unfolded in Minneapolis after the police arrived on the scene and clashed with protesters. It was the first time authorities had been seen on the scene in more than an hour.
The police officers, some in riot gear, immediately launched into action, using pepper spray and batons to disperse crowds near the police station. Police were seen shoving at least one person, while protesters responded by throwing projectiles at the officers as others fled the site.
Watch:
Police and fire engines have arrived at the epicenter of the protests in Minneapolis, where a number of buildings have been burning.
CNN crew on the site witnessed the authorities arriving to the scene just after 4:30 a.m. ET.
A large number of protesters are still out early this morning in Minneapolis and a number of buildings are on fire.
Hundreds of people are still protesting near the Minneapolis police building in the 3rd Precinct.
At least five other buildings in the vicinity of the station are in flames. One of the burning structures that has now been destroyed by the fire was an events space with a multiple restaurants about a block away from the police station. A liquor store across the street from the station has also been burned down.
The Minnesota National Guard tweeted late last night that they had activated more than 500 soldiers to St. Paul, Minneapolis and surrounding communities.
When asked about the National Guard, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said “many of the National Guard as I mentioned were stationed and are being stationed at locations to help prevent some of the looting that we’ve seen.”
Some of the locations where the National Guard is being positioned include banks, grocery stores and pharmacies.
Protests spread across the United States for the third night in a row on Thursday, as crowds demonstrated against police brutality and called for justice in the death of George Floyd.
Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, died after pleading for help as a white police officer pressed his knee on Floyd’s neck for several minutes while pinning him to the ground. Floyd was declared dead at a nearby hospital soon after, according to authorities.
Here’s a look at the biggest developments:
The New York Police Department carried out more than 40 arrests and summons during the George Floyd protests on Thursday, police told CNN.
The charges range from obstruction of governmental administration to criminal possession of a weapon, which stemmed from a woman who pulled a switchblade at Union Square, said a law enforcement official.
One protestor was also arrested after trying to yank the gun out of a New York Police officer’s holster, the official said.
According to the official, one of the injured officers suffered a possible concussion.
Demonstrators were protesting the death of George Floyd, who died after pleading that he couldn’t breathe while a police officer held him down with his knee.
US President Donald Trump’s tweet on the protests in Minnesota, which he posted earlier tonight as protesters set fires in St. Paul and Minneapolis, has been flagged by Twitter as violating the platform’s rules.
The original tweet read:
Twitter’s response: The tweet is hidden by a notice from Twitter – but is still viewable behind the notice.
“This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules about glorifying violence. However, Twitter has determined that it may be in the public’s interest for the Tweet to remain accessible,” says the notice.
A separate statement from the official Twitter Communications account explained that the tweet had been flagged “based on the historical context of the last line, its connection to violence, and the risk it could inspire similar actions today.”
The warning message will likely fuel Trump’s ongoing dispute with Twitter. Just yesterday, Trump signed an executive order targeting social media companies, days after Twitter called two of his tweets “potentially misleading.”
On Tuesday, Twitter applied a fact-check to two of Trump’s tweets, including one that claimed, without evidence, that mail-in ballots would lead to widespread voter fraud. Trump immediately shot back, accusing the social media giant of censorship and warning that if it continued to offer addendums to his messages, he would use the power of the federal government to rein it in, or even shut it down.
Tech companies are also pushing back on the order; Facebook and Google have said Trump’s proposal risks harming the internet and the wider digital economy.
Protests swept across a number of major American cities on Thursday, with crowds taking to the streets to demand action against police brutality and accountability for several related deaths.
Minneapolis and St. Paul, known as the “Twin Cities” of Minnesota, both saw huge protests. In St. Paul, protesters faced off against riot police, batting tear gas canisters back and forth. More than 170 businesses were looted or damaged by the protests, police said.
And in Minneapolis, thousands of protesters surrounded a police precinct and set it on fire. They spray-painted the sides of the building, tried to climb up it, and cheered as the flames engulfed the building.
All staff inside had been evacuated prior to the fire.
In Memphis, Tennessee, protesters marched through midtown for several hours. They held up signs demanding justice for several black Americans who had recently been killed – George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor.
The protests also escalated into violence in Louisville, Kentucky, where Taylor lived and was shot by police in March.
Shots were fired in the crowd during the protests tonight, said police special advisor Jessie Halladay.
Protests also took place in other cities like Denver, Colorado, and Phoenix, Arizona.
See the full gallery of protests across the US:
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey has responded to a tweet from President Trump accusing him earlier tonight of weak leadership.
Trump’s tweet: “A total lack of leadership. Either the very weak radical left mayor, Jacob Frey, get his act together and bring the city under control, or I will send in the National Guard and get the job done right,” Trump said.
Frey’s response: The mayor addressed the President’s comments at a press conference tonight.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey condemned the looting and destruction seen in the city tonight during violent protests.
“What we have seen over the past several hours and the past couple of nights in terms of looting is unacceptable,” he said at a press conference. “Our communities cannot and will not tolerate it.”
He added that the city had received resources from the state, and that further aid is expected.
On the burning police station: A police precinct was set on fire, vandalized and surrounded by protesters tonight – but there was no sign of the police or firefighters. When asked why, Frey pointed to other fires and looting incidents that officers had to respond to as well.
The Minnesota National Guard, which was mobilized earlier in the evening, are now stationed at various locations facing potential looting, including banks, grocery stores, and pharmacies, he said.
More than 170 businesses in St. Paul, Minnesota, were damaged or looted during tonight’s ongoing protests over the death of George Floyd, according to the city police department.
Crowds of protesters have faced off with riot police in St. Paul throughout the evening and overnight hours, with police throwing tear gas, and protesters throwing it right back.
There were reports earlier Thursday of protesters targeting stores like TJ Maxx and Target.
As evening fell, the Minnesota National Guard was activated, with more than 500 soldiers sent to St. Paul and Minneapolis, where fiery protests have also broken out.
Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer called for peace and order in the Kentucky city as protests continue to escalate.
Breonna Taylor, 26, was an EMT who was killed during a police raid of her apartment in Louisville.
During the raid in March, Taylor was shot at least eight times when three officers forcibly entered her apartment to serve a search warrant in a narcotics investigation. The department said the men announced themselves and returned gunfire when Taylor’s boyfriend fired at them.
Her death, like those of Ahmaud Arbery and now George Floyd, have sparked outrage across the nation, with many Louisville protesters tonight holding signs bearing Taylor’s name.
The City of Minneapolis is urging protesters near the burning police station to retreat after “hearing unconfirmed reports that gas lines to the Third Precinct have been cut and other explosive materials are in the building.”
“If you are near the building, for your safety, PLEASE RETREAT in the event the building explodes,” the city posted on their verified Twitter account.
CNN has not been able to independently verify those reports.
The fire is still ongoing, and has engulfed much of the building. Minneapolis Fire Chief John Fruetel told CNN the fire department is working with the police and other city authorities to assess the situation.
Watch:
US President Donald Trump just tweeted about the ongoing protests in Minneapolis, warning that “when the looting starts, the shooting starts.”
He criticized Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey as “very weak” and showing “a total lack of leadership.”
“These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen. Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!” he tweeted.
It’s past midnight in Minneapolis, but protests are still ongoing. Earlier tonight, demonstrators set a police precinct on fire, which continues to burn. All staff inside the building were evacuated earlier in the day, and the fire department has yet to arrive on scene and extinguish the flames.
Some context: This is now the third night of protests across Minnesota and the country, following the death of George Floyd, who was shown on video being pinned to the ground by a white police officer who pressed his knee on Floyd’s neck for several minutes.
Floyd, a 46-year-old black man who was unarmed and handcuffed, pleaded that he could not breathe. He was declared dead at a nearby hospital soon after, according to authorities.
CNN’s Brian Stelter explains more:
The Dalai Lama has deplored the death of George Floyd in Minnesota and blamed discrimination and racism for his death.
The 84-year-old exiled spiritual leader – who is revered as a living god by millions of Tibetan Buddhists – gave a virtual teaching to followers from his home in Dharamsala in northern India on Friday morning local time.
“We see in the news channels, the media about discrimination on the basis of color or religion these days, and then there is killing due to that, and then there are some who even take it as a pride to be able to kill somebody,” he said.
He specifically pointed to George Floyd’s death, describing seeing footage of the police officer who “actually pushed his knee on the neck of that black person.”
“So because of this discrimination, racism on the basis of race, such things are done,” the Dalai Lama said.
Minneapolis authorities are still assessing how to approach the ongoing fire in the police precinct, Minneapolis Fire Chief John Fruetel told CNN on the phone.
“I do know they were trying to set fire on the front door area of that building,” he said. “I do not know that it (the fire) gained access to that structure as of yet. But I do know that they were certainly trying to set the building on fire in the front door area.”
He added that it was a “challenging time” for the fire department, and that they had responded to multiple fires over the past few days as protests raged.
The department has a plan in place and may go to the burning precinct to try and put it out, but that decision will depend on the situation, he said. “That’s the number one priority of ours, to make sure we keep our folks safe.”
He added that he was “a little bit shocked, a little disappointed” to see the police station being burned, and called for an end to destructive action.
Watch more:
What started out as a peaceful protest is now escalating, with reports of property damage, according to a press conference from the Louisville Metro Police Department in Kentucky.
“We are currently working a large crowd in the downtown area around 2nd Street,” police tweeted earlier.
Police say they are now hearing reports of shots fired in the crowd, according to the police special advisor Jessie Halladay.
Protesters have blocked buses and disrupted traffic, and have thrown bottles at officers, she said. Police have also seen excessive damage to vehicles and buildings.
“This is not what we want for our city,” Halladay said.
On Thursday night, Minneapolis police released a transcript of the 911 call that led to George Floyd’s arrest and death, which has sparked outrage nationwide as protesters demand justice. Here’s the transcript:
Operator: 911 what’s the address of the emergency?
Caller: This is ah 3759 Chicago Ave.
Operator: How can I help you?
Caller: Um someone comes our store and give us fake bills and we realize it before he left the store, and we ran back outside, they was sitting on their car. We tell them to give us their phone, put their (inaudible) thing back and everything and he was also drunk and everything and return to give us our cigarettes back and so he can, so he can go home but he doesn’t want to do that, and he’s sitting on his car cause he is awfully drunk and he’s not in control of himself.
Operator: Okay, what type of vehicle does he have?
Caller: And …. um he’s got a vehicle that is ah … one second let me see if I can see the license. The driver license is BRJ026.
Operator: Okay, what color is it?
Caller: It’s a blue color. It’s a blue van.
Operator: Blue van?
Caller: Yes, van.
Operator: Alright blue van, gotcha. Is it out front or is it on 38th St.?
Caller: Ah it’s on 38th St.
Operator: On 38th St. So, this guy gave a counterfeit bill, has your cigarettes, and he’s under the influence of something?
Caller: Something like that, yes. He is not acting right.
Operator: What’s he look like, what race?
Caller: Um, he’s a tall guy. He’s like tall and bald, about like 6 … 6 1/2, and she’s not acting right so and she started to go, drive the car.
Operator: Okay so, female or a male?
Caller: Um…
Operator: Is it a girl or a boy?
Caller: (Talking to somebody else) — he’s asking (inaudible) one second. Hello?
Operator: Is it a girl or a boy that did this?
Caller: It is a man.
Operator: Okay. Is he white, black, Native, Hispanic, Asian?
Caller: Something like that.
Operator: Which one? White, black, Native, Hispanic, Asian?
Caller: No, he’s a black guy.
Operator: Alright (sigh).
Caller: How is your day going?
Operator: Not too bad.
Caller: Had a long day, huh?
Operator: What’s your name?
Caller: My name is (deleted)
Operator: Alright, a phone number for you?
Caller: (Deleted)
Operator: Alright, I’ve got help on the way. If that vehicle or that person leaves before we get there, just give us a call back, otherwise we’ll have squads out there shortly, okay?
Caller: No problem.
Operator: Thank you.
Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock pleaded with people in the city to demonstrate peacefully in a post on Twitter Thursday night.
He then posted a video statement, saying he “understands the frustration and sense of pain and disgust following the murder of George Floyd.”
“Leave the weapons at home and let’s walk, let’s march together in unity and let’s have our voices heard but keep everyone safe,” he said in the video. “That is the way we need to do this. And let’s do it in the memory of George Floyd and so many others and their families who are suffering from the pain from these type of incidents in our communities.”
Protests across the nation: Tonight, protests rage across America. Some remain peaceful while others have turned destructive, with reports of looting and arson.
So far we’ve seen demonstrations in Phoenix, Arizona; Louisville, Kentucky; Memphis, Tennessee; and of course, Minneapolis and St. Paul in Minnesota.
The Minneapolis police evacuated all staff in the 3rd Precinct shortly after 10 p.m. local time “in the interest of the safety of our personnel,” according to a statement from John Elder, director of the department’s Office of Public Information.
“Protesters forcibly entered the building and have ignited several fires,” Elder said.
A fire appears to have engulfed about half of the building, with the crowd of protesters outside cheering and setting off firecrackers and fireworks.
The Minnesota National Guard announced on its Twitter that troops have been activated, as protests continue in St. Paul and Minneapolis.
“We have activated more than 500 soldiers to St. Paul, Minneapolis and surrounding communities. Our mission is to protect life, preserve property and the right to peacefully demonstrate. A key objective is to ensure fire departments are able to respond to calls,” said the tweet.
It’s past 10:30 at night in Minneapolis, but the protests show no sign of slowing – if anything, they appear to be ratcheting up in intensity, with protesters setting a police precinct on fire.
Police had set up a fence around the precinct earlier, but it has since been pushed over and thousands of protesters are crowding around the precinct, climbing up the building and lighting its exterior on fire.
“The precinct is on fire. We don’t know where the police are,” said CNN National Correspondent Sara Sidner. “The fire alarm is going on inside … People are cheering and more fireworks are going off as the police precinct is burning.”
There is no sound of a siren in the background, and no sign of firefighters arriving – a stark contrast to the protests last night, when multiple fire trucks arrived to put out fires.
“The police have made a calculated decision that they’re not going enforce what we’re seeing behind us,” said CNN Correspondent Josh Campbell, who is also on the scene.
It may be because the police know their presence could further inflame tensions and make the situation escalate, Campbell added. “It’s a dangerous and volatile situation here. I think the police know that.”
Watch more:
Melvin Carter, the mayor of St. Paul, Minnesota, told CNN the video of George Floyd’s death was “nauseating” and that protesters’ anger was “understandable.”
“It’s heartbreaking for everybody I know … everybody I know looks at that video and feels like crying or throwing up, and it’s disgusting, it’s unacceptable,” he said.
“The only human response to that video is anger and sadness,” he added.
“If it was just George Floyd then maybe that would be one thing. But you know, as we all know, we’ve seen video after video…we’ve seen that the people responsible go free. And it seems no one gets held accountable.”
He acknowledged that members of the community were unhappy with the rioting and looting, and described it as “unfortunate and destructive” – but said there was a broader root problem that needed addressing.
“In order to get to the bottom of this we have to understand where the rage is coming from in the first place,” he said.
As evening falls in Minneapolis, protests show few signs of abating.
CNN Correspondent Josh Campbell, on the scene in Minneapolis, described the scene, as crowds continue to grow.
“There was a member of the community yelling at people throwing rocks into windows, saying, ‘Don’t do this in my community.’ Not everybody here behind us is a protester. Some are trying to keep the peace,” he said.
The crowds have been there all afternoon and there seem to be more people out tonight than last night.
Several large fires are still active, including a car that has been set alight, and the air is thick with billowing smoke and tear gas.
Earlier, police put up a fence around the perimeter of the police department, to separate the protesters from the precinct. The fence has since been pushed down by protesters.
There are police on rooftops, throwing tear gas down to the street, said Campbell. Protesters are responding by throwing rocks and glass bottles, setting off firecrackers, and using lasers to point to police officers as it gets dark out.
Watch below:
The House Judiciary Committee has sent a letter to the Department of Justice, calling for an investigation into police violence.
The committee is opening its own oversight and legislative action in response, said the letter.
“The federal government has a critical role to play in promoting a culture of accountability for all law enforcement organizations, including at the state and local level. This is why House Judiciary Democrats have sent a letter today to the US Department of Justice to demand action.”
He added that the committee would open its own oversight and legislative action “to address the crisis of racial profiling, excessive force by law enforcement and lost trust between police departments and the communities they serve.”
The letter pointed to a number of recent cases in addition to George Floyd that have attracted nationwide attention – Ahmaud Arbery, who was was killed while jogging near Brunswick, Georgia, and Breonna Taylor, an EMT who was killed after officers forced their way inside her home.
St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter told CNN he spoke with Minnesota’s governor and requested the National Guard after protests and fires Thursday.
“We have requested the assistance of the National Guard, and so we expect that response to be forthcoming and we expect their assistance to be forthcoming,” Carter said.
Earlier today: Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz signed an executive order activating the Minnesota National Guard after protests and demonstrations erupted through the state and city of St. Paul.
George Floyd’s death sparked protests across the country after a video surfaced showing the 46-year-old black man handcuffed and on the ground saying, “I can’t breathe,” as a police officer holds him down with a knee on his neck.
George Floyd’s brother Philonise said black Americans are “tired of seeing the same thing every day” when it comes to how people of color are treated in the US.
George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, died on May 25 after pleading for help as a police officer used his knee on Floyd’s neck to pin him — unarmed and handcuffed — to the ground in Minneapolis. His death sparked outrage and protests across the country, demonstrations that continued today.
Philonise Floyd said he has yet to sleep in four days due to his brother’s death.
“Those officers they’re at home sleeping. Nah, I can’t stand for that. They need to be locked up tonight. I want justice. Arrest those officers so my family and the world can have closure,” Philonise Floyd said.
Columbus, Ohio, Mayor Andrew Ginther tweeted about the protests taking place in Columbus this evening over the death of George Floyd.
“I understand why some residents are angry and taking to the streets. I have said many times that racism exists across the country, state and right here in Columbus. We are committed to addressing racism wherever we see it,” Ginther tweeted.
“I respect peaceful protests and ask residents to remain peaceful in their actions tonight and every night,” the mayor added.
Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman will need to review all evidence in the George Floyd death, including information that is not favorable to the case to “understand the full picture of what actually happened,” an email from his office said clarifying statements made during the Thursday afternoon news conference.
The email was sent to clarify a statement made by Freeman when he misspoke during the news conference Thursday, his office told CNN over the phone.
Following the news conference, CNN spoke with Freeman who said he wants to understand the entire scene before making a charging decision.
Freeman clarified that he was not saying there is evidence suggesting the officer is not guilty but meant that he wants to ensure that whatever evidence is out there is incontrovertible and chargeable.
A TJ Maxx and Napa Auto Parts Store in St. Paul, Minneapolis, are reportedly on fire as protests continue in the city following the death of George Floyd.
“A Fire has been reported at TJ Maxx on the 1400 block of University Avenue,” the St. Paul Police Department tweeted. “Officers continue to be hit with rocks and bottles thrown by people who are also breaking into buildings, looting and destroying property.”
The police department also tweeted: “A large fire has broken out at the Napa Auto Parts Store at 1271 University Avenue West. Please avoid the area.”
In another tweet, the police department wrote: “Please stay away from the Midway area, near Target on University Avenue. We continue to work to disperse the crowds, protect people and protect property. However, our officers continue to be assaulted and the area is not safe.”
This comes after Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz signed an executive order activating the Minnesota National Guard after protests and demonstrations erupted through the state and city of St. Paul.
Floyd’s death sparked protests across the country after a video surfaced showing the 46-year-old black man handcuffed and on the ground saying, “I can’t breathe,” as a police officer holds him down with a knee on his neck.
Mayor Jacob Frey has declared a local emergency in Minneapolis due to civil disturbances in the city, according to a declaration issued by his office.
The declaration said the city has requested assistance from the state, including the authorization of the National Guard, to assist local authorities in “restoring safety and calm due to the civil disturbance” following the death of George Floyd.
The emergency will remain in place for 72 hours and provides the immediate use of emergency regulations.
All four officers involved in the death of George Floyd have invoked their fifth amendment right against self incrimination, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman told CNN following a news conference Thursday afternoon.
Freeman said he looking at the Freddie Gray case for guidance in the Floyd case and wants to have the full picture of the case before moving forward.
About the Gray case: Gray, 25, died after sustaining a neck injury while in police custody in April 2015. Gray’s death became a symbol of the black community’s mistrust of police and triggered days of protests and riots in Baltimore. The city became a focal point of the Black Lives Matter movement and the nationwide debate on excessive police force.
Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said his office is going to investigate the death of George Floyd “as expeditiously, as thoroughly as justice demands.”
Freeman said the manager of the victims services division is in touch with the Floyd family and is keeping them updated on the case.
He did not announce any updates in the case during the news conference but did mention that his office has previously obtained a guilty verdict against a police officer for deadly use of force.
The county attorney’s office is receiving thousands of calls and social media messages from throughout the country daily, Freeman said.
Michael Freeman, the Hennepin County attorney, said he didn’t want to discuss evidence in the investigation into George Floyd’s death but called the video showing the incident “graphic and horrific and terrible.”
During the news conference, a reporter told Freeman: “I think people will be hard-pressed to understand how you can’t bring charges at least against the officer who had his knee on the neck.”
Freeman responded: “It is a violation of my ethics to talk and evaluate evidence before we announce our charging decision. And I will not do that. I will say this, that video is graphic and horrific and terrible and no person should do that. But my job in the end is to prove he violated a criminal statute. And there is other evidence that does not support a criminal charge. We need to wade through all of that evidence and come to a meaningful decision and we are doing that to the best of our ability.”
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Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman called the force used against George Floyd “excessive and wrong” at a news briefing Thursday afternoon.
Erica MacDonald, the US Attorney of the district of Minnesota, said her department is investigating if there was any federal and criminal violations.
“Police officers, by the nature of their job, have the authority to use a certain amount of force when they are executing their duties faithfully and honestly and in accordance with their policies. So a police officer, a law enforcement officer, has the ability to use the right amount of force, but not excessive force, not excessive force as defined by the law. That is what we are looking at with respect to any federal, criminal violation, is that use of excessive force,” MacDonald said.
Mike Freeman, Hennepin County attorney, said investigators need to take time to make sure they have all of the evidence in the death of George Floyd.
“We just can’t rush this,” Freeman said. “These need to be done right. Please give me and give me the United States attorney time to do this right and we will bring you justice.”
The United States Attorney for the District of Minnesota Erica MacDonald echoed those sentiments, saying that officers in their professional capacity have the right to use force but not excessive force.
Her office is looking into possible criminal violations of rights in Floyd’s death, she said.
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Erica MacDonald, the US Attorney of the district of Minnesota, told residents that peaceful protests “are always acceptable” before calling for a cessation of destructive demonstrations.
On Wednesday night, Minneapolis’ second day of protests transitioned to rioting and looting south of downtown, with people smashing their way into stores and setting businesses and other buildings ablaze.
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Rainer Drolshagen, special agent in charge for the FBI, shared his condolences to George Floyd’s family Thursday afternoon during a news conference and asked the public for its help in the investigation.
Drolshagen went on to ask for “everyone that was present before, during and after the incident to come forward to help us build the best picture of what occurred.”
“Each piece of the puzzle helps complete the big picture,” he said.
Watch:
Erica MacDonald, the US Attorney of the district of Minnesota, told reporters that the investigation into the death of George Floyd will be the Department of Justice’s “top priority.”
MacDonald added: “Minneapolis, our nation, really the world, has witnessed this incredibly and disturbing loss of life. My heart goes out to George Floyd. My heart goes out to his family. My heart goes out to his friends. And my heart goes out to the community. We are grieving, and we will continue to grieve.”
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The St. Paul Police Department is urging the public to avoid several parts of the city as looting and demonstrations have led to damage of police vehicles and bottles and rocks have been thrown at officers, the department tweeted Thursday.
Police said affected areas include the “1400 block of University Ave, at an East Side business on the 1700 block of Suburban Ave. and more.”
Read the tweets:
Gov. Tim Walz signed an executive order Thursday activating the Minnesota National Guard after protests and demonstrations erupted throughout Minneapolis and St. Paul following the death of George Floyd.
Floyd’s death this week sparked protests across the country after video emerged that shows the 46-year-old black man handcuffed and on the ground saying, “I can’t breathe,” as a police officer holds him down with a knee on his neck.
All four officers involved in the incident have been fired from the Minneapolis Police Department. But that has not quieted calls for them to face criminal charges.
Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown said that he has addressed the George Floyd death in Minneapolis with his command officers and has required that they address the incident with the officers under their command.
“What took place in Minneapolis earlier this week is absolutely reprehensible and tarnishes the bade nationwide, including here in Chicago. I want to make it clear that this behavior is not acceptable in Chicago, will not be tolerated under my command and quite frankly has no place in law enforcement anywhere,” Brown said.
He said the department has been working to “develop authentic relationships and restore trust with our communities” and that incidents like this “certainly make our jobs more difficult.”
“These actions are not reflective of the overwhelming amount of officers committed to constitutional policing nationwide. Any officer who abuses their power or stands by and allows it to happen does not deserve to wear the badge, period,” Brown said in the statement.
President Trump said he feels “very, very badly” for what happened to George Floyd, but said he has not yet spoken with Floyd’s family.
Trump said he and Attorney General Bill Barr had been discussing the case before reporters arrived.
“We’re very much involved,” Trump said. He noted federal authorities would “take a very strong look” at what happened, but he declined to say whether he believes the officers involved should be charged with murder.
He was speaking to reporters in the Oval Office ahead of signing a social media executive order.
Earlier this afternoon, press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters the President received a briefing on the Floyd case from Attorney General Bill Barr and the FBI Deputy Director David Bowdich.
Trump tweeted on Wednesday evening that he had asked the FBI and Department of Justice to pursue an investigation of Floyd’s death.
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Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot addressed the recent death of George Floyd at the beginning of her Thursday news conference in Chicago.
“I ran for mayor in the aftermath of the murder of Laquan McDonald. I was sickened watching our community struggle under the weight of racial disparities and systemic inequities,” Lightfoot said.
Later in the press conference, Lightfoot added: “To watch the entirety of that video and to see the life leave another human being on the ground, begging for his life, saying he can’t breathe, getting no relief – and then just seeing when the paramedics came how callously they treated him almost like he was a piece of meat – it’s sickening. And I want to make sure that something like that doesn’t happen in our city.”
Federal and state law enforcement officials will make a statement regarding the investigation into the death of George Floyd during a Thursday afternoon press conference, according to a press release from the FBI.
US Attorney Erica MacDonald and Rainer Drolshagen, FBI special agent in charge, are among the speakers. Minnesota Department of Public Safety Commissioner John Harrington will also be speaking in the news conference.
Andrea Jenkins, vice president of the Minneapolis City Council, said that racism is a virus “that has affected our entire society for far too long,” responding to the death of George Floyd.
Jenkins represents the community where Floyd died.
“The people in my community are pained, are traumatized… We must absolutely must see justice for George. That is what community is seeking. That is what community is asking for,” Jenkins told CNN’s Brooke Baldwin.
She added that while she does not condone the violence and looting that stemmed from the protests, she also understands “the outrage that people are expressing.”
When asked by Baldwin if she had any had a message for white America on how they can act in regard to racism in the country, Jenkins said:
Jenkins added that while she isn’t calling any single person a racist, she believes that people who benefit from racism are “the only people that can end it.”
“We need white people to stop perpetuating the system of racism,” she said.
Jenkins called on officials to declare racism a public health issue during a news conference today.
Metro Transit, Minneapolis’ public transit service, announced it will suspend bus and light rail service this evening in a tweet.
The city has been gripped by protests and riots in reaction to the death of George Floyd.
Read the tweet:
Derek Chauvin, the former police officer seen with his knee on George Floyd’s neck, had 18 prior complaints filed with Minneapolis Police Department’s (MPD) Internal Affairs, according to MPD.
It’s not clear what the internal affairs complaints were for and no detail was provided by MPD.
Only two of the 18 complaints against Chauvin were “closed with discipline,” according to a MPD internal affairs public summary.
The “discipline issued” column listed a letter of reprimand for each of the two complaints.
Former officer Tou Thao had six complaints filed with internal affairs, one of which was still open, the summary said. The other five were closed without discipline.
Former Minneapolis police officers J Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane had no complaints filed, according to a MPD internal affairs public summary.
CNN has reached out to attorneys representing the officers for comment.
President Trump was “very upset” by the video that sparked outrage over the death of George Floyd in Minnesota, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters Thursday afternoon.
“He was very upset when he saw that video,” she said, adding that the President watched the video on Air Force One.
McEnany told reporters that Trump was being briefed this afternoon by Attorney General Bill Barr about the incident.
President Trump is being briefed by Attorney General Bill Barr this afternoon on the death of George Floyd, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said.
“As I’m briefing you at this moment, the President is receiving a briefing from the Attorney General Bill Barr on this and the deputy director of the FBI. So that is ongoing as I begin this briefing,” McEnany told reporters at the White House.
McEnany called Floyd’s death “absolutely tragic.”
Trump told reporters in Florida yesterday that he was “going to look” at the case, and would be getting “a report when we get back. A very full report.”
In a tweet later that day, Trump said he had called for the investigation “to be expedited.”
Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Democrat from Minnesota, said it was “heartbreaking” to watch protests continue last night in Minneapolis in the wake of George Floyd’s death.
Omar said she believes it’s important, however, to find a “balance” for peaceful protests because “violence begets violence.”
Rep. Val Demings, a Democrat from Florida who had an almost three decade career in law enforcement before becoming a congresswoman, called Floyd’s death a “tragedy.”
“It didn’t have to happen. Officers are supposed to use the level of force that’s necessary to meet the resistance. Clearly, Mr. Floyd was not resisting and it shouldn’t have happened and… this officer must be held accountable,” Demings said.
She continued: “I think you should ask as many Americans of all ethnicities, what do they think about this tragic death. Because this is not a black issue, this is an American issue.”
Minneapolis, Minnesota Police Chief Medaria Arradondo acknowledged his department’s role in the “deficit of hope” in the city following the death of George Floyd.
“I’m absolutely. Sorry for the pain, the devastation trauma,” Arradondo said at a briefing Thursday.
Arradondo said criminal behavior will not be allowed in the city.
“Crowds got large and became more mobile,” Arradondo said. The majority of demonstrators last night were gathering peacefully but there was a “core group” that was looting and engaging in other criminal acts, according to Arradondo.
“The people that were involved in the criminal conduct” were not known to local community leaders, Arradondo said.
There were minor injuries reported among community members but nothing significant, he said.
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One of the four officers fired for his involvement in the death of George Floyd was part of a 2017 excessive force lawsuit that was settled by the city of Minneapolis, according to a settlement obtained by CNN and confirmed by the attorney for the plaintiff in the case.
Both the city and the officers denied liability in the settlement, according to a statement from the city.
Former Minneapolis police officer Tou Thao was named in a lawsuit stemming from the 2014 arrest of Lamar Ferguson. CNN has not yet determined who is legally representing Thao.
Ferguson was subjected to “cruel and unusual punishment” by Thao and another officer during his arrest in an alley on October 7, 2014 on a warrant, according to the suit.
The lawsuit claimed that the officers used “unreasonable force” during the arrest in the form of “punches, kicks and knees to the face and body while Ferguson was defenseless and handcuffed.” Ferguson suffered broken teeth, bruising, and trauma as a result of the arrest, according to the lawsuit.
Ferguson was walking home from his grandmother’s house with his pregnant girlfriend when they were approached by a Minneapolis police car with Thao and the other officer inside. The officers allegedly put Ferguson in handcuffs behind his back and took his wallet with his identification out of his pocket, according to the lawsuit.
The second officer took the ID to run it through the the National Crime Information Center but no warrant showed up in the system, the lawsuit said. The second officer “falsely stated that there was a warrant out for Plaintiff’s arrest,” the lawsuit said, prior to the alleged physical attack occurring.
The lawsuit was settled by the city of Minneapolis on December 11, 2017 by payment of $25,000 to Lamar Ferguson and his attorneys, according to the settlement.
CNN’s Pierre Meilhan contributed to this report.
Minneapolis, Minnesota, Mayor Jacob Frey said the city will now begin an “all-out effort to restore peace and security in our city.”
This comes after demonstrators protested Monday’s death of George Floyd, a black man who died after pleading for help after a police officer pinned him – unarmed and handcuffed – to the ground.
Frey said at a press conference on Thursday that he has authorized a “unified command structure” that would allow Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo to use resources and personnel from other jurisdictions.
The city has also requested support from the state, Frey said.
On infrastructure and damage: The second night of protests transitioned to rioting and looting over a few blocks south of downtown, with people smashing their way into stores and setting businesses and other buildings ablaze.
Frey said protecting this infrastructure and the community is important especially during the coronavirus pandemic.
“Let’s hold these communities dear by doing right by them and by safe guarding them and these community assets that we know they need especially during a pandemic. We need to offer radical love and compassion that we all have in us. I believe in the city and I know you do, too,” Frey added.
George Floyd’s family said the violence and looting occurring in the demonstrations “distract from the strength of our collective voice,” according to a statement released in a series of tweets from Ben Crump, lawyer for the family.
The family thanked “every person who is standing with them” and urged protesters to not “sink to the level of our oppressors.”
The statement also said the family “wants peace in Minneapolis.”
Read the full statement below:
Responding to a question about the death of George Floyd, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he thinks there is a criminal case against the law enforcement officer.
“I think the situation was so disturbing and ugly and frightening, just frightening, that a law enforcement officer in this country could act that way,” he said.
There were about 30 fires, including at least 16 structure fires, during protests in Minneapolis, Minnesota last night over the death of George Floyd, the city’s fire department said in a statement.
The “fire events” were intentional and no injuries were reported as a result of the fires, the fire department said.
“Crews continue to respond and extinguish fires along Lake St E at this time,” the statement said.
Stephen Jackson, a former NBA player and friend of George Floyd who called Floyd his “twin,” said he wants to see justice for his death as protests continue in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Jackson said that the officers involved should be held to account for Floyd’s death.
“What is justice? I can’t even answer that question. I’ve seen so many black men get killed, officers get laid off jobs with pay, no jail time. … Four cops killed my brother blatantly in the daytime for the world to see. You get fired, nobody is in jail? What is justice? I’m sorry, I can’t answer that. I honestly don’t know,” Jackson said.
Jackson said Floyd would only want to see his two daughters be taken care of, and he went to Minneapolis to work.
“You very seldom get people that support you genuinely with no motives. Floyd was that for me, and I’m going to miss him,” he said.
Watch more:
The NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves and NFL’s Minnesota Vikings issued statements on Twitter decrying George Floyd’s death.
In a statement posted on Twitter Thursday, the Minnesota Timberwolves wrote:
On Wednesday, the Minnesota Vikings posted on Twitter the following statement:
The U.S. Attorney’s office in Minnesota and the FBI’s Minneapolis field office said in a statement today that they are conducting “a robust criminal investigation” into the circumstances surrounding the death of George Floyd.
The statement also said the Department of Justice “has made the investigation a top priority and has assigned experienced prosecutors and FBI criminal investigators to the matter.”
The federal investigation will determine whether the actions by the involved former Minneapolis Police Department officers “violated federal law.”
Upon conclusion of the FBI’s investigation, the statement said, the U.S. attorney’s office will determine whether federal criminal charges are “supported by the evidence.” If it is determined that there has been a violation of federal law, “criminal charges will be sought.”
Read the full statement here.
The University of Minnesota, whose main campus is in Minneapolis, has announced it will scale back the relationship it has with Minneapolis police following the death of George Floyd.
The university will “no longer contract with the Minneapolis Police Department for additional law enforcement support” and it will not use the police department for “specialized services are needed for university events,” the institution president said in a message to students and faculty Wednesday night.
“I do not have the words to fully express my pain and anger and I know that many in our community share those feelings, but also fear for their own safety,” Gabel said.
“We will limit our collaboration with the MPD to joint patrols and investigations that directly enhance the safety of our community or that allow us to investigate and apprehend those who put our students, faculty, and staff at risk,” Gabel added.
The statements followed the shock and anger that poured through communities across the country as video of Floyd’s last moments alive began circulating on social media.
The 46-year-old unarmed man was handcuffed and on the ground as he pleaded that he couldn’t breathe while a police officer held him down with a knee on his neck. Three others were also at the scene.
St. Paul, Minnesota, Police Chief Todd Axtell said he made all of his officers watch the video of a Minneapolis police officer putting his knee on the neck of George Floyd, calling the incident “disgusting” and “dehumanizing.”
“It is something that absolutely has to stop and I want to challenge all of our officers, not just in the St. Paul Police Department, but throughout this country, to really check our humanity, really check back on why we became police officers in the first place. We’re here to protect people,” Axtell told CNN on Thursday. Axtell added that the incident was not “acceptable police behavior.”
He said police departments rely on what he calls a “bank of trust.”
“Every positive interaction, every right thing that a police officer does, makes a deposit into that very important bank of trust,” he explained.
Axtell said incidents of violence like this can destroy the trust officers work to build.
“The actions of very few can really take us back generations of trying to build up trust and confidence with all of our communities within the cities we serve,” he added.
Watch here:
The brother of George Floyd — the man who died after pleading that he couldn’t breathe while a police officer held him down with his knee — said that he wants justice for his brother’s death after a second night of protests.
Parts of Minneapolis were burning Thursday morning after a chaotic night of rioting and clashes between law enforcement and protesters.
“This is not a one-time thing. It’s going to last forever. … I’m never going to get my brother back,” Philonise Floyd said while wiping away tears.
Philonise Floyd cried as he spoke about watching the video of his brother being held down by a police officer and other officers not intervening.
“I watched the video. It was hard, but I had to watch the video,” he said. “And as I watched the video, those four officers, they executed my brother. The paramedics, they [dragged] him across the ground without administering CPR. They showed no empathy, no compassion, nobody out there showed it. Nobody,” he said.
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Bakari Sellers, an author and CNN commentator, cried on air while discussing George Floyd’s death saying “for those of us who have a mistrust of the system, it’s hard for us to do anything else other than to just cry this morning.”
“It’s hard being black in this country when your life is not valued and people are worried about the protesters and the looters. And it’s just people who are frustrated who for far too long and not have their voices heard,” Sellers said in response to the protests.
He said the protests are about getting “white people in this country to have a sense of understanding about the pain and trauma that it is to be black in this country.”
He said it is hard for him to find the words to explain racial violence to his two kids.
“It’s just so much pain,” Sellers said. “I’m raising a son. I have no idea what to tell him. It’s just, it’s hard being black in this country when your life is not valued,” he added.
“I keep telling my children they can be free,” Sellers said. “I want them to be able to be a United States senator or president. But what happens if they get pulled over and they comply?”
Watch more of the interview here:
Former NBA star Stephen Jackson talked to NBC’s Craig Melvin about his friendship with George Floyd, saying he found out about his lifelong friend’s death when his girlfriend’s mom texted him the video.
Jackson said at first he didn’t realize that was Floyd, until he saw another message from his friend asking him about it.
Jackson said it hurt to hear Floyd call out for his mother and children in the video.
“It hurt, man, it hurt because I knew that was a cry for help. I’m a black man and I’m a strong black man and I know Floyd. That’s a cry for help. We don’t scream our mother’s name like that unless we know something is wrong and our life is in jeopardy and we have, we can’t control it. That was a cry for help,” Jackson said.
Jackson also said that Floyd would be happy the protesters are fighting for him, but he would rather that the people responsible for his death are penalized.
“He’s not the type of person to promote violence and stuff like that. He used to baptize people, so what we’re seeing right now, this is not what Floyd would want,” Jackson said.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey told CBS that he thinks George Floyd’s death was murder.
“Do you think that was murder?” CBS’s Jeff Pegues asked Frey.
Frey also said he thinks race was a factor in his death.
“The facts that I’ve seen, which are minimal, certainly lead me down the path that race was involved,” Frey told Pegues.
Watch here:
George Floyd’s family attorney Benjamin Crump told CNN’s Alisyn Camerota that the Floyd family is waiting for the medical examiner’s office to complete their autopsy so they can “give him a proper funeral and also to have an independent autopsy because they do not trust…the city of Minneapolis.”
Crump said the officers should have been arrested that same day Floyd died.
“So every day that passes, Alisyn, it’s like another day of injustice,” Crump said.
“They executed my brother in broad daylight. People had to film that. People had to see that,” Philonise Floyd said, wiping tears from his eyes. “People pleaded for his life.”
Floyd said he didn’t want protesters to lash out, but he can’t stop them because they have pain.
“I want everything to be peaceful but I can’t make everybody be peaceful, I can’t, it’s hard,” Floyd said.
Watch here:
George Floyd’s girlfriend told CBS News correspondent Jeff Pegues that the video of Floyd’s death makes it clear to her that he was murdered.
Ross called Floyd a “gentle giant and a loving father” and the man she “loved for three years.”
“You know, I just want to get on the phone and call my baby and hear his voice,” Ross said. “He cannot die in vain.”
