A Hobson’s Choice is defined as “an apparently free choice when there is no real alternative”
You will remember that Derek Chauvin was the Minneapolis cop who was charged for the murder of George Floyd. The Hennepin County Da has taken the shotgun approach to the case, charging Chauvin with every conceivably connected crime that could be mustered in the hope that something sticks. Recently a third degree murder charge, which has been dropped, was reinstated. This indicates that the DA is not terribly confident in the case. There would be good reason for that.
“I can’t breathe” became the mantra for Floyd protests which resulted in a great amount of damage. It’s good to review some facts. If you watch the police body cam video you will note that Floyd first begins claiming “I can’t breathe” as the officers were trying to put him into the cruiser (1:38 of the video). He repeats it soon after- prior to being pinned down on the ground. Floyd was combative for most of the time.
Politics took over from science very early in this case.
Two different autopsies were performed and they differed.
Michael Baden, the former Chief Medical Examiner for the city of New York, gave the Floyd family exactly what they wanted:
A statement from the Floyd’s family attorney read: “Sustained pressure on the right side of Mr Floyd’s carotid artery impeded blood flow to the brain, and weight on his back impeded his ability to breathe.
“The independent examiners found that weight on the back, handcuffs, and positioning were contributory factors because they impaired the ability of Mr. Floyd’s diaphragm to function.”
But then adds this
Baden added that there were no underlying health problems, despite the official autopsy claiming a heart problem likely contributed to his death.
The former New York City chief medical examiner said: “He was in good health. The cause of death is asphyxia compression of the neck and back.
Good health? Hardly
Several of Floyd’s key heart arteries were severely narrowed – evidence of serious heart disease. Several were 75% blocked and one was 90% blocked, and that was made worse by where the clogs occurred in terms of crimping the supply of blood to his heart, Nelson said. Blockages of 70% or more usually cause chest pain, he added.
“That degree of narrowing is sufficient to cause death,” Davis said.
Floyd also had an enlarged heart — “48% bigger than it ought to be” — likely from his high blood pressure and heart disease, Nelson said.
“A heart that’s enlarged like this is more likely to develop an abnormal heart rhythm,” Davis added.
The autopsy also found signs of tobacco use. Smoking is a big risk factor for heart disease and many other health problems.
No underlying health issues? That’s patently false. This is from the original Hennepin County autopsy
II. Natural diseases
A. Arteriosclerotic heart disease, multifocal, severe
B. Hypertensive heart disease
1. Cardiomegaly (540 g) with mild biventricular
dilatation
2. Clinical history of hypertension (emphasis mine)
This is also from the original autopsy
III. No life-threatening injuries identified
A. No facial, oral mucosal, or conjunctival petechiae
B. No injuries of anterior muscles of neck or laryngeal
structures
C. No scalp soft tissue, skull, or brain injuries
D. No chest wall soft tissue injuries, rib fractures (other
than a single rib fracture from CPR), vertebral column
injuries, or visceral injuries
E. Incision and subcutaneous dissection of posterior and
lateral neck, shoulders, back, flanks, and buttocks
negative for occult trauma
No neck or throat injuries.
Floyd had a fatal level of Fentanyl in his system.
“If he were found dead at home alone and no other apparent causes, this could be acceptable to call an OD. Deaths have been certified with levels of 3,” Baker told investigators.
In another new document, Baker said, “That is a fatal level of fentanyl under normal circumstances.”
He was already a dead man by the time he was removed from his car.
Baden’s report was sought when the first autopsy didn’t offer them the condemnation demanded by politics. There is another issue.
The Minneapolis Police Department training includes the use of knee on the neck to subdue combative suspects
MINNEAPOLIS — In filing a motion to dismiss the charges he faces in the death of George Floyd, former Minneapolis police officer Thomas Lane included 30 pages of MPD training materials, including information on a restraint called the “maximal restraint technique,” and a photo of an officer with his knee to a suspect’s neck similar to the hold used by former officer Derek Chauvin on Floyd.
The training materials specify: “the maximal restraint technique shall only be used in situations where handcuffed subjects are combative and still pose a threat to themselves, officers or others, or could cause significant damage property if not properly restrained.”
This is a complicated case and that brings us to Hobson.
If Chauvin is convicted not much is going to happen. If Chauvin is acquitted Minneapolis will burn. If Chauvin is acquitted the homes of jurors and their families will burn.
Perhaps worse.
BLM and Antifa have a habit of destroying and burning when events do not satisfy them. It has already happened. Authorities well know this as wire fencing and concrete barriers are being built around the Hennepin County Courthouse right now.
The jurors in the case face the classic Hobson’s Choice. Their lives may be on at risk. Justice may become the next victim.
Ironically the whole thing could be over if someone simply decided Floyd died of COVID
Medical Examiner’s Autopsy Reveals George Floyd Had Positive Test For Coronavirus
See author page
It really is too bad this country has moved so far away from “following the science” while, at the same time, screaming that’s what we actually do.
A black commentator on Court TV this AM, before court opened, opined that there will be no healing until after the “guilty verdict!”
Ummmm…..wait.
Nope.
That’s the plan.
Again, this AM, a reporter and cameraman had their lives threatened simply for setting up OUTSIDE the George Floyd zone that blacks had barracaded.
See starting at the one minute mark:
Notice these were antifa in that they were all in black but one at least, the female, is white.
Even locals of all races are being kept out of “George Floyd Square,” by these THUGS.
Having watched the jury selection on Court TV this will be a railroad job.
Feel sorry for the police officer who happened to try to arrest a dying OD victim,
George Floyd.
Edited to add:
How many times are families who lost a loved one hit by a drunk driver’s car outraged that the driver “got off” with a mere financial penalty and a probation?
What are they told by society?
Get over it.
Same with George Floyd.
He is NOT EVEN a PARTY in this case, yet it wrongly bears his name.
His family and so-called friends (who can’t wait to loot) should grow up and accept the verdict peacefully.
But that’s too much to hope for.
If anything beyond a light sentence is given to this guy, even more cops will be jumping from the profession than already have.
Floyd is dead because he broke the law and resisted arrest while on a fatal dose of fentynel.
Facts.
I suspect that Minneapolis will get the worst of both world’s.
They’ll successfully convict Chauvin on lesser crimes. They won’t be the correct crimes (and I think the State already knows it) and ANTIFA, BLM and The Bros will still “burn it all down”.
@MrToad: It’s so awesome that a global pandemic caused by China served as a catalyst for false racial narratives that don’t exist.
If only there were no laws, and no cops, racism wouldn’t exist.
It is not Hobson’s Choice.
It is a Procrustean bed. (look it up)
Always remember: verdict first, trial second.
Jurors face a simple choice: convict or die. Fire bombs will fall on their houses and kill their families. The Mob knows where they live.
I would not serve on such a jury. There are no good outcomes.
Minneapolis has approved a $27 million settlement with the Floyd family. Question: why would you reach a settlement just before the trial to (theoretically) determine exactly WHAT HAPPENED to cause his Floyd’s death?
Of course, Chauvin is a dead man walking. Political terrorism has done its job. No one DARES oppose the left’s bloodlust for a good, old fashioned lynching. This is the new rule: if anything negative ever happens to a black person after they have committed a crime, a steep price must be paid. A right to commit crimes and evade justice has been bequeathed upon them. Why would anyone try to be a cop?
@Nan G:
Wouldn’t that be considered “inciting violence”? Oh, wait… he’s not a Republican. Never mind.