Less than two months after the African-American George Floyd died in a brutal arrest, the family sued the four accused police officers and the city of Minneapolis.
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The officials used excessive and unjustified force in the operation and thus violated the 46-year-old’s fundamental rights, lawyer Ben Crump said on Wednesday (local time) with reference to the application.
He accused the city administration of “deliberate indifference” because it failed to take action against dangerous police practices and to properly train its police officers. In doing so, she promoted a culture of excessive violence and impunity.
“He (Floyd) was literally tortured to death, not in a third world country, but here in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States in 2020,” added Crump. He did not provide information on the amount of the compensation requested. However, the goal of the team of lawyers is to make it in the future terribly expensive for the police to “illegally kill marginalized people, especially blacks”.
A city council attorney called Floyd’s death a “tragedy” and announced that the lawsuit would be examined. It is important that the process against the accused police officers runs smoothly. The main trial against them is scheduled to begin in March 2021.
The unarmed Floyd was killed on May 25 when he was arrested in Minneapolis. A white officer pressed his knee to Floyd’s neck for several minutes, begging to let him breathe. His death led to mass protests across the country against police violence and racism. The police had arrested Floyd on suspicion of paying with a false $ 20 bill. The officials were released and charged. They face long prison terms. (dpa)
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