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Selasa, 06 April 2021

Officers are advised to 'stay away from the neck', ex-cop's former colleague tells George Floyd trial - Sky News

Minneapolis police officers are advised to "stay away from the neck when possible" when restraining combative suspects, the murder trial of the ex-cop accused of murdering George Floyd has heard.

Testimony from Derek Chauvin's former colleagues at the city's police department continued on Tuesday, after the force's chief yesterday said his actions against Mr Floyd were in "no way" part of his training.

Chauvin is on trial on charges of second and third-degree murder, as well as manslaughter, following the death of the unarmed 46-year-old last May.

Chauvin, 45, was the officer seen kneeling on the neck of Mr Floyd for nine minutes and 29 seconds outside a shop where he had allegedly tried to use a fake $20 note to pay for a pack of cigarettes.

Footage of the incident went viral, sparking global protests and super-charging the Black Lives Matter movement.

In the hearing on Tuesday, the court heard from Lieutenant Johnny Mercil, a use-of-force instructor.

Prosecutor Steve Schleicher showed Lt Mercil a photo of Chauvin kneeling on Mr Floyd’s neck, and asked if the officer was using an authorised neck restraint, given the circumstances.

Lt Mercil responded: "I would say no."

After police were called to the shop on 25 May 2020, the officers arrested Mr Floyd, who had taken drugs and became upset when they tried to put him in a police car.

It was at this point that the still-handcuffed man was taken out of the vehicle and knelt on. As he laid on the floor, he could be heard calling for his mother and saying: "I can't breathe."

Passers-by filmed the incident and - once the footage had gone viral and the protests began - Chauvin was fired from the police department afterwards.

Under cross-examination by Chauvin’s lawyer, Lt Mercil was shown screenshots from several points in the video.

Eric Nelson asked if the images showed Chauvin’s knee on Mr Floyd’s neck, back or shoulder - with Lt Mercil often agreeing with the lawyer.

While he testified that officers are trained to use their knee across a person's back or shoulder and employ their body weight to maintain control, he added: "We tell officers to stay away from the neck when possible."

Also giving evidence on Tuesday was Sergeant Ker Yang, the officer in charge of crisis-intervention training.

Sgt Yang said that officers were taught to "slow things down and re-evaluate and reassess".

According to police records, Chauvin took part in use-of-force training in 2018. He completed a 40-hour course on recognising people in a crisis in 2016.

Mr Nelson has argued that Chauvin "did exactly what he had been trained to do over his 19-year career", seeking to blame Mr Floyd’s death on his use of drugs and underlying health conditions.

The trial started last week, and is due to last for around three more.

George Floyd Killing: The Trial - Follow live continuous coverage of court proceedings in the trial of Derek Chauvin on our website, app, YouTube and Sky Pop Up Channel on 524.

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2021-04-06 21:35:20Z
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George Floyd death: Chauvin 'trained to stay away from neck' - BBC News

A police trainer has testified that ex-officer Derek Chauvin was not trained to use his knee in a neck restraint as he did during George Floyd's arrest.

Minneapolis use-of-force expert Lt Johnny Mercil said Mr Chauvin should also have later moved the prone Mr Floyd to a different position.

Mr Chauvin, 45, was filmed kneeling on Mr Floyd for over nine minutes during Mr Floyd's arrest last May.

Mr Chauvin is on trial for murder and has denied the charges against him.

The footage of Mr Chauvin, who is white, with his knee on African-American Mr Floyd's neck sparked global protests against racism.

With the trial in its second week, jurors have now heard from more than 20 witnesses, including four police training experts on Tuesday. The trial is expected to last for at least one month.

As police officers are rarely convicted or charged at all for deaths that occur in custody, the verdict in this trial is being seen as an indication of how the US legal system will treat such cases in future.

Prosecutors are seeking to prove that Mr Chauvin's actions violated his training and have focused their questions on police guidelines and strategies taught to help officers de-escalate situations.

Mr Chauvin's defence attorneys have argued that Mr Floyd's efforts to resist arrest necessitated the restraint, and that the "hostile" crowd surrounding Mr Chauvin required "unique situational awareness".

No witnesses at the scene were arrested, and several of them have testified that they urged officers to check Mr Floyd's pulse and provide him with medical care.

Speaking at a group prayer session outside the heavily fortified courthouse on Tuesday, Mr Floyd's brother Philonise Floyd, said "after we get the verdict and we get this conviction, we'll be able to breathe".

Bystanders watching the incident unfold on 25 May 2020

What did the training experts say?

Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) training coordinator Mr Mercil told the court that officers are taught to use force in proportion to a suspect's level of resistance and it was "very important to be careful with the person".

"We tell officers to stay away from the neck when possible," he said, adding that officers are told to place body weight on a suspect's shoulders when reasonable.

Mr Mercil testified that based on the training that officers receive, Mr Chauvin should only have used that manner of neck restraint if there was "active aggression" involved.

He said that Mr Floyd had no ability to resist or show aggression once he was face down on the ground.

Mr Mercil told the court that Mr Chauvin should have recognised that it was "time to de-escalate the [level of] force" once Mr Floyd fell unconscious, and that Mr Floyd should have been moved into a different position to avoid asphyxiation.

Earlier in the day, Sgt Ker Yang, a crisis intervention training coordinator, confirmed that Mr Chauvin had completed the department's 40-hour practical training course and his "ultimate goal" should have been to assess Mr Floyd's medical condition during his arrest.

Mr Floyd's brother spoke outside the courthouse

Prosecutors have suggested that asphyxiation was the cause of Mr Floyd's death - contrasting with the ruling of the medical examiner who said Mr Floyd died of "cardiopulmonary arrest", which means a person's heart and lungs have stopped.

Mr Chauvin's defence team has contended that alleged drug use and an underlying heart condition contributed to Mr Floyd's death.

Sgt Jody Stiger, a use of force expert for the Los Angeles Police Department, testified that officers were initially justified in their actions because Mr Floyd was "actively resisting" arrest as he was being placed in the patrol car.

"However, once he was placed in the prone position on the ground, he slowly ceased his resistance and at that point the officers - ex-officers I should say - they should have slowed down or stopped their force as well," he testified.

Nicole Mackenzie, a Minneapolis police officer who trains officers on medical first aid, agreed with Mr Chauvin's defence, saying that "if the environment was determined to be not safe, you may not start [CPR] right away".

Prosecutors and fellow officers have criticised Mr Chauvin and the other arresting officers for not providing Mr Floyd with medical assistance before ambulances arrived.

Strategy and rebuttal

Analysis by Tara McKelvey, BBC News, Minneapolis

When prosecutors questioned Johnny Mercil, one of several officers who have been called to the stand, on Tuesday, they asked about the way that officers are taught to use force on suspects during an arrest, and the practice of "neck restraints".

The use of force, as it is known, lies at the heart of the prosecutors' strategy. They are trying to show that Mr Chauvin broke rules, and was a rogue officer.

One of their key witnesses, police chief Medaria Arradondo, testified on Monday that Mr Chauvin violated policies regarding the use of force.

Mr Chauvin's lawyer Eric Nelson has fought against that notion by emphasising that officers have to consider different factors while using force, such as potential threats from a nearby crowd.

Mr Nelson granted that, occasionally, an officer might "look bad" while restraining a suspect, but the officer could still be following the law, and the policies, on the use of force.

Mr Nelson's main argument - that Mr Floyd died largely because of alleged drug usage and a weak heart, not because of the way Mr Chauvin treated him - will be ramped up in the coming days, as medical evidence about his death is presented.

Before testimony began, lawyers argued over whether a man who was with Mr Floyd at Cup Foods on the day of his death should be forced to speak during the trial.

Morries Hall and his lawyer appeared in court via video link to say that he would refuse to testify, in order to avoid possibly recriminating himself in Mr Floyd's death with details on illicit drug use.

The judge said he would push the decision until next week, and asked Mr Chauvin's defence lawyer to prepare a list of possible questions for Mr Hall.

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2021-04-06 20:44:32Z
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George Floyd death: Chauvin 'trained to stay away from neck' - BBC News

A police trainer has testified that ex-officer Derek Chauvin was not trained to use his knee in a neck restraint as he did during George Floyd's arrest.

Minneapolis use-of-force expert Lt Johnny Mercil said Mr Chauvin should also have later moved the prone Mr Floyd to a different position.

Mr Chauvin, 45, was filmed kneeling on Mr Floyd for over nine minutes during Mr Floyd's arrest last May.

Mr Chauvin is on trial for murder and has denied the charges against him.

The footage of Mr Chauvin, who is white, with his knee on African-American Mr Floyd's neck sparked global protests against racism.

With the trial in its second week, jurors have now heard from more than 20 witnesses, including three police training experts on Tuesday. The trial is expected to last for at least one month.

Prosecutors are seeking to prove that Mr Chauvin's actions violated his training and have focused their questions on police guidelines and strategies taught to help officers de-escalate situations.

No witnesses at the scene were arrested, and several of them have testified that they urged officers to check Mr Floyd's pulse and provide him with medical care.

What did the training experts say?

"We tell officers to stay away from the neck when possible," he said, adding that officers are told to place body weight on a suspect's shoulders when reasonable.

Mr Mercil testified that based on the training that officers receive, Mr Chauvin should only have used that manner of neck restraint if there was "active aggression" involved.

He said that Mr Floyd had no ability to resist or show aggression once he was face down on the ground.

Mr Chauvin's defence team has contended that alleged drug use and an underlying heart condition contributed to Mr Floyd's death.

Both Mr Mercil and Mr Yang agreed with the defence that police tactics need to be "dynamic" independent of training and "may be lawful even if they look bad", as Mr Chauvin's lawyer said, in certain unique situations.

Prosecutors and fellow officers have criticised Mr Chauvin and the other arresting officers for not providing Mr Floyd with medical assistance before ambulances arrived.

Strategy and rebuttal

Analysis by Tara McKelvey, BBC News, Minneapolis

The use of force, as it is known, lies at the heart of the prosecutors' strategy. They are trying to show that Mr Chauvin broke rules, and was a rogue officer.

One of their key witnesses, police chief Medaria Arradondo, testified on Monday that Mr Chauvin violated policies regarding the use of force.

Mr Chauvin's lawyer Eric Nelson has fought against that notion by emphasising that officers have to consider different factors while using force, such as potential threats from a nearby crowd.

Mr Nelson granted that, occasionally, an officer might "look bad" while restraining a suspect, but the officer could still be following the law, and the policies, on the use of force.

Before testimony began, lawyers argued over whether a man who was with Mr Floyd at Cup Foods on the day of his death should be forced to speak during the trial.

The judge said he would push the decision until next week, and asked Mr Chauvin's defence lawyer to prepare a list of possible questions for Mr Hall.

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Prince Hamza: Jordan bans all news and social media coverage of royal's alleged plot - Sky News

Jordan has banned social media users and all news outlets from publishing anything about the king's half-brother - who has been accused of plotting to destabilise the country.

It follows Prince Hamza's dramatic video message in which he said he was under house arrest and accused Jordan's leaders of incompetence and corruption.

On Monday, just two days later, he made an apparent U-turn and pledged allegiance to King Abdullah after mediation by the royal family.

The government has claimed the prince had been conspiring with foreign parties to destabilise the Middle Eastern state - something he has denied.

Jordan officials have now banned coverage of the matter.

"To safeguard the secrecy of the investigations being undertaken by the security services in relation to His Highness Prince Hamza bin Hussain and others, Amman's public prosecutor has decided to ban the publication of everything related to the investigations at this stage," the state news agency said.

The ban applies to all news outlets and social media.

An audio message by Prince Hamza, 41, was released on Monday in which he said he would disobey military orders not to communicate with the outside world - but hours later came a signed letter of allegiance.

"I place myself in the hands of his majesty the king... I will remain committed to the constitution of the dear Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan," Hamza said in the letter released by the palace.

It came after mediation with Prince Hassan, the king's uncle, and other princes, officials added.

Prince Hamza was once groomed by his mother, Queen Noor, as a future king - and educated privately in the UK and at Harvard University.

But when King Abdullah took power in 2004, he removed him as heir in favour of his own son.

Hamza had in recent weeks attended more tribal gatherings, where there is frustration at the shrinking economy and lack of jobs - and where the government and king have been criticised more openly

Public anger in Jordan - usually seen as one of the most stable Middle East countries - has also increased since nine coronavirus patients died when a new hospital ran out of oxygen.

Officials accused Prince Hamza of trying to upstage the king by going to the victims' homes to pay condolences after the monarch had earlier gone to the hospital.

More than a dozen others were also arrested after the alleged plot was made public at the weekend, said deputy prime minister Ayman Safadi.

He said Jordanian intelligence had intercepted communications revealing the apparent conspiracy was at "zero hour".

Queen Noor of Jordan responded in a tweet: "Praying that truth and justice will prevail for all the innocent victims of this wicked slander. God bless and keep them safe."

Jordan's king is not believed to be under direct threat as he retains the support of the military and security forces.

Saudi Arabia, its powerful regional neighbour, has also backed King Abdullah and on Monday sent foreign minister Faisal bin Farhan to meet his counterpart.

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2021-04-06 16:52:30Z
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Hunter Biden - live: President’s son joined Burisma as ‘f**k you’ to Putin and took toad venom to sober up - The Independent

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2021-04-06 19:18:47Z
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Hunter Biden book - live: Memoir reveals Obama prophesied Trump’s ‘fear-mongering cult’ at Beau’s funeral - The Independent

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IMF forecasts stronger recovery for world economy - BBC News

The International Monetary Fund is now forecasting a stronger economic recovery this year and next.

The IMF has upgraded both its UK and global forecasts compared with what it projected in January.

But the British economy is still predicted to return to its pre-pandemic level of activity only in late 2022.

The agency also warns that recoveries are diverging dangerously within and between countries.

The new UK forecast is for growth of 5.3% this year and 5.1% in 2022. Both figures are upgrades, though the latter is only marginally higher than the January forecast.

The recovery follows last year's pandemic driven contraction of 9.9% which was the deepest of any of the G7 major developed economies.

'Fairly modest'

Bringing in the two predicted recovery years, the UK's performance over 2020 to 2022 would be ahead of one of the G7 countries, Italy.

The new global forecasts are growth of 6% and 4.4% this year and next. Both are upgrades, a fairly modest one for 2022.

That mainly reflects up-rating to the forecast for developed economies, especially the United States.

'Diverging recoveries'

In a blog on the forecasts, the IMF's chief economist Gita Gopinath says a way out of the health and economic crisis is increasingly visible. Vaccinations, she writes, are likely to power recoveries in many countries in 2021.

But she is also concerned about how those recoveries are diverging.

Countries with slower vaccine rollouts, more limited support from economic policy, and those more reliant on tourism are likely to do less well.

The first two of these are particular issues for developing countries. Many have less access to vaccines, and they also tend to find it more difficult to finance economic and health policy actions.

Among emerging and developing economies, China has already returned to pre-pandemic levels of economic activity. But many others in the group are not expected to do so until well into 2023.

The report says the cumulative losses in income per person over the period 2020 to 2022 are likely to be 20% for those countries, compared with a less severe but still large figure of 11% for the developed world.

'Reversed'

The report also says that gains in poverty reduction have been reversed. It says people counted as extremely poor are likely to have increased by 95 million last year, with a rise of 80 million in the number who are undernourished.

The IMF says the divergences are occurring not just between but also within countries. Income inequality is likely to increase as young people and those with relatively low levels of skills have been harder hit in both developed and developing countries.

Women have already been affected as they account for a large share of employment in some sectors, such as tourism, where there is a lot of personal contact.

The pandemic has also had an impact on workers whose jobs are vulnerable to automation. That is a process that has been accelerated as a result of the health crisis.

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2021-04-06 12:30:50Z
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Selasa, 06 April 2021

More from Black Lives Matter

What did the training experts say?

Strategy and rebuttal

What did the training experts say?

Strategy and rebuttal

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'Fairly modest'

'Diverging recoveries'

'Reversed'