THE ADVENTURE OF THE ONE-LEGGED POLICEMAN

In the matter of the death of George Floyd, the Prosecution has now pretty much concluded its case against ex-police officer Derek Chauvin. I haven't been watching the live coverage, but I've seen recaps and excerpts.

No surprises, so far.

The Prosecution has pounded on two points: that what Chauvin did was not official police policy, and that his actions were the cause of Floyd's death.

One expert on police conduct concluded Chauvin used "deadly force" against Floyd, and then pointed out the force was not warranted by the situation.

Of course, calling the knee on the neck "deadly force" presupposed the knee caused the man's death, a conclusion not yet ruled on in court. But in effect, he was saying the use of a knee fell in the same category as the use of a gun.

And in that context, he was probably right when he said such force was not warranted. Mr. Floyd was not posing the sort of threat to the police for which shooting him would have been a reasonable response.

At least, not apparently. Was Floyd squirming under the knee? Was he resisting the knee on his neck? He may have been, which might mean continued use of the knee was indicated—so long as the knee was simple constraint and not "deadly force."

A 911 operator, who was watching city camera feed of the event, said there was so little motion in the image she thought something was wrong. News reporting of her statement seemed to suggest she meant she thought the cops were doing something "wrong" to George Floyd. But I think it was clear she meant she thought the video feed was locked up. A technical issue.

Here's what happened: After a long discussion, the arresting officers succeeded in getting Floyd into the police SUV, but things went south right after that. The man went nuts in the car and had to be removed. The cops pulled him from the passenger side of the vehicle and laid him out on the ground just outside—the minimum amount of effort. (Floyd was a big guy.)

Most of the struggle ended there, as far as one could tell from the video. It is not known if Floyd was lifting up against the knee on his neck. Mostly, one concludes the cops kept their position atop Floyd to prevent him from wandering away after his erratic behavior in the car. I suppose you could fault the police for not easing up off him and running that experiment.

But an ambulance was on the way, so they kept their positions.

One medical expert (Dr. Martin J. Tobin) testified about the amount of oxygen in Floyd's body as the hold-down continued, noting (somehow) the precise moment when that oxygen was completely used up—as if he were observing medical monitoring equipment. He also concluded Chauvin's knee was the critical player.

At one point, the expert pointed out photographic proof that the toe of Chauvin's boot had left the ground, saying something like: "Now his entire body weight is on the man's neck."

Which is a reasonable statement, had Chauvin been a one-legged man. But he possessed another leg, and another knee to take up some of his body weight. Maybe most of it. The only way to decide how much weight was actually going onto Floyd's neck is by concluding it was enough to strangle the man.

Again, something not yet determined in a court of law.

But folks know what they know. Almost all "thinking" stems from a conclusion already "on the record" inside the human brain. It's how we roll.

Apparently, the Defense plans to show Floyd died from something other than Chauvin's knee on his neck: drug use and an underlying heart defect. No mention, as far as I know, of the fact Floyd may have been suffering from an anxiety or panic attack.

Panic attacks may feel like dying, but they're not suppose to be fatal. On the other hand, if you add various drugs (fenyanyl and methamphetamine) and a pre-existing heart defect, a panic attack might prove deadly after all. (Both drugs are known to cause or increase anxiety.)

Or maybe Chauvin's knee strangled the man to death, and whatever else was going on just made it easier. Maybe killing the black man (because he was a black man) was Chauvin's plan all along, and his only worry was that the ambulance might arrive too soon to get the job done.

I don't know, and I don't think anyone else does, either. (With the possible exception of Chauvin.)

But if the body-cam audio transcripts are accurate, I think it's clear something was going on with Floyd. He appears to be mentally altered. Maybe his condition didn't lead to his death—or even contribute to it. But Floyd said "I can't breathe" seven times before anybody touched his neck.

Which leads directly to reasonable doubt that Chauvin knew putting his knee on Floyd's neck caused the man to say "I can't breathe."

Chauvin doesn't need to intend for Floyd to die in order for felony murder to be proved, only that Floyd died during the commission of a felony (aggravated assault). But Chauvin's felony has to include intent—he has to know he is hurting the man—or the whole package falls apart.

As far as I am aware, the Defense has not disclosed they plan to use this information. I think it would be an ineffective defense if they leave it out.

Arguing about cause of death is a murky business. Did this or that cause death? Or contribute to death, under complicated circumstances?

Who the hell knows? People tend to hold onto whatever opinion they first formed. (Probably from the video.)

But establishing reasonable doubt is legal bedrock. Failure to do so in this case would be dereliction.