Chauvin’s knee on Floyd’s neck was an unauthorized move: Defense in closing argument

In his closing argument Defense Attorney, Eric Nelson, said that Derek Chauvin’s own use of force trainer at Minneapolis Police Department testified that his action of placing his knee on the neck of the suspect “is not an authorized move”.

Nelson said that out of many police officers who testified about their opinion on Chauvin’s use of force against Floyd, he has found Minneapolis Police Lt. Johnny Mercil’s testimony the most “relevant” and “interesting”.

Talking about Mercil, Nelson said, “The best glimpse that we will get into the training of a Minneapolis Police Department officer comes from the trainer who conducts the training.”

Mercil had testified that a knee on the neck “can be utilized in certain circumstances”, as per Nelson.

Nelson continued, “He described using the knee on the neck and back and stated that it can be there fit an extended period of time, depending on the level of his resistance you get, once the suspect is handcuffed, it does not necessarily mean that its’ time to move your leg, because when people are handcuffed they can continue to be dangerous to themselves and others.”

During his trial testimony: Nelson had asked him during cross-examination that if Chauvin’s technique could be a part of another training, Mercil replied, “perhaps”, added that it might be considered “using bodyweight to control”.

Continuing: “However, I will add that we don’t – we tell officers to stay away from the neck when possible and if you are going to use the bodyweight to pin, to put it on their shoulder and be mindful of position.”