Protesters demand justice before former police officer goes on trial in George Floyd’s death

Minneapolis, March 15 (RHC)-- The U.S. city of Minneapolis has reached a record $27 million civil settlement with the family of George Floyd.  The unarmed Black man was murdered by a white police officer last May when he kneeled on his neck for more than nine minutes.

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who represents Floyd’s family, told reporters: “In this historic agreement, the largest pretrial settlement in a police civil rights wrongful death case in U.S. history makes a statement that George Floyd deserved better than what we witnessed on May 25th, 2020, that George Floyd’s life matters, and, by extension, Black lives matter.  It sends a message that the unjust taking Black life will no longer be written off as trivial, unimportant or unworthy of consequences.”

This comes as the criminal trial for former officer Derek Chauvin, who is charged with killing George Flood continues.  Seven jurors have now been selected.