Ex-MPD Sgt: officers could’ve ended restraint of George Floyd when he stopped offering resistance

The Minneapolis Police Sergeant in charge of Derek Chauvin and the other officers involved in George Floyd’s death offered key testimony in court late Thursday. On the night George Floyd died, a 911 dispatcher had seen video of the encounter between police and Floyd in real-time and called Sgt. David Pleoger out of concern. Based on that call, Pleoger called Chauvin on his cell phone. In video played in court, Chauvin is head saying “we had to hold a guy down who was going crazy…he wouldn’t go in the back of the squad.” Pleoger says during their initial conversation, Chauvin did not mention putting his knee on Floyd’s neck or back and that Chauvin did not mention applying such uses of force until later when all officers involved were at HCMC to check on Floyd’s condition. Asked by the state when, in his opinion when use of force on Floyd should’ve ended, Pleoger responded, “when Mr. Floyd was no longer offering up any resistance to the officers, they could’ve ended the restraint.” Prosecutor Matthew Frank asked, “and that was after he was handcuffed and on the ground and no longer resistant?” Pleoger answered, “yes.” Asked by the defense, Pleoger agreed use of force can be unattractive and sometimes officers have to do very violent things. On re-direct from the state, Pleoger agreed that there are times officers should not do violent things.