ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — A Minneapolis police officer who oversaw medical training for two of the three former officers charged with violating George Floyd’s civil rights has testified that the officers failed to follow their training to do everything they could to prevent his death.
Officer Nicole Mackenzie, the department’s medical support coordinator, took the stand for a second day in the federal trial of J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao.
She testified Monday that Kueng and Lane were in a police academy “emergency medical responder” class that she taught, which covered first aid, ethics in care and how to hand people off to paramedics. On Tuesday, Mackenzie also discussed refresher training that Thao would have received.
Prosecutor Allan Slaughter played body camera video in which Floyd repeatedly complains, “I can’t breathe,” as Officer Derek Chauvin kneels on the Black man’s neck for 9 1/2 minutes while Floyd is handcuffed, facedown. Mackenzie said what she saw and heard was “inconsistent” with what Kueng and Lane were trained to do and with departmental policies. She said they should have stood or sat Floyd up or rolled him onto his side.
Mackenzie also said what she saw and heard of Thao’s actions when reviewing his body camera video was “inconsistent” with officers’ training because she saw no efforts to render aid.
Kueng, Lane and Thao are accused of depriving Floyd, 46, of his rights when they failed to give him medical aid. Kueng and Thao are also accused of failing to intervene in the May 2020 killing, which triggered protests worldwide and a reexamination of racism and policing.