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A Minneapolis Police Department press release from the day of George Floyd's death last year went viral Tuesday in the wake of Derek Chauvin's conviction on murder charges.

The big picture: MPD's initial description of the tragedy, which set off a massive global movement that culminated in the jury's guilty verdict on all charges, claimed that Floyd "physically resisted officers" and "appeared to be suffering medical distress" after being handcuffed. It made no mention of the kind of force Chauvin used on the 46-year-old Black man.

Between the lines: "To a reader on May 25, 2020, that description depicts an immediately connected chain of events: as Floyd is handcuffed, it is noted that he in distress," writes the Washington Post's Philip Bump.

"But in reality, the preceding paragraph includes the longest “and” in the history of the English language. It is an over nine-minute- 'and,' linking the moment when Floyd was placed in handcuffs to the time at which that 'medical distress' necessitated that he be moved to an ambulance," Bump continues.

"It’s an 'and' that silently includes more than a minute in which Floyd had already lost consciousness."

Background: John Elder, the Minneapolis Police Department director of public information who wrote the press release, told the Los Angeles Times that he got his information from sergeants who worked in the area where Floyd was killed and a computer log of communications between officers and dispatchers.

Elder told the L.A. Times the log did not include any details about the use of force and that he did not review body-camera footage, which he said would have required him to wait several hours. He realized that the press release was inaccurate only after cell phone footage emerged.

“This had literally zero intent to deceive or be dishonest or disingenuous. Had we known that this [situation] was what we saw on the video, that statement would have been completely different,” Elder told the Times.

Man Dies After Medical Incident During Police Interaction

May 25, 2020 (MINNEAPOLIS) On Monday evening, shortly after 8:00 pm, officers from the Minneapolis Police Department responded to the 3700 block of Chicago Avenue South on a report of a forgery in progress.  Officers were advised that the suspect was sitting on top of a blue car and appeared to be under the influence.

Two officers arrived and located the suspect, a male believed to be in his 40s, in his car.  He was ordered to step from his car.  After he got out, he physically resisted officers.  Officers were able to get the suspect into handcuffs and noted he appeared to be suffering medical distress.  Officers called for an ambulance.  He was transported to Hennepin County Medical Center by ambulance where he died a short time later.

At no time were weapons of any type used by anyone involved in this incident.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension has been called in to investigate this incident at the request of the Minneapolis Police Department.

No officers were injured in the incident.

Body worn cameras were on and activated during this incident.

The GO number associated with this case is 20-140629.

How Minneapolis police initially described George Floyd's murder

"Man Dies After Medical Incident During Police Interaction"

Memorial to George Floyd at the intersection of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue in Minneapolis. Brandon Bell/Getty Images

George Floyd

Black History Month

<p>A Minneapolis Police Department <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="press release" data-vars-click-url="https://web.archive.org/web/20200526183652/https://www.insidempd.com/2020/05/26/man-dies-after-medical-incident-during-police-interaction/" data-vars-content-id="0fa00f93-06df-409d-b2e2-fad463de354d" data-vars-headline="How Minneapolis police initially described George Floyd&#x27;s murder" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200526183652/https://www.insidempd.com/2020/05/26/man-dies-after-medical-incident-during-police-interaction/" target="_blank">press release</a> from the day of George Floyd&#x27;s death last year went viral Tuesday in the wake of Derek Chauvin&#x27;s conviction on murder charges.</p><p><strong>The big picture: </strong>MPD&#x27;s initial description of the tragedy, which set off a massive global movement that culminated in the jury&#x27;s guilty verdict on all charges, claimed that Floyd &quot;physically resisted officers&quot; and &quot;appeared to be suffering medical distress&quot; after being handcuffed. It made no mention of the kind of force Chauvin used on the 46-year-old Black man.</p>

Politics

As of Monday, the prosecution and defense have made their cases in the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who is charged with murdering George Floyd 11 months ago. Now the verdict is up to the jury. 

Axios Re:Cap is joined by Axios Twin Cities reporter Nick Halter, who is on the ground, to discuss the highlights from the trial, the decision facing the jury, and what could happen when a verdict is released. 

The Derek Chauvin trial heads to the jury

Axios Twin Cities reporter Nick Halter joins from Minneapolis to discuss what could come next.

Derek Chauvin trial

Axios Re:Cap

<p>As of Monday, the prosecution and defense have made their cases in the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who is charged with murdering George Floyd 11 months ago. Now the verdict is up to the jury. </p><p><strong>Axios Re:Cap</strong> is joined by Axios Twin Cities reporter Nick Halter, who is on the ground, to discuss the highlights from the trial, the decision facing the jury, and what could happen when a verdict is released. </p><div><div><iframe frameborder="no" height="200" scrolling="no" src="https://playlist.megaphone.fm?e=AXIOS9578055095" width="100%"></iframe></div><div style="display:none"></div></div><span data-ad-status="NO_AD_LENGTH" data-ad-type="midStoryAd"></span>

News

The Minneapolis City Council on Friday approved a $27 million settlement with the family of George Floyd, with $500,000 to be set aside for funding in his former community.

Why it matters: Ben Crump, the attorney for the Floyd family, called it the largest pretrial civil rights settlement ever and said in a statement that it "sends a powerful message that Black lives do matter and police brutality against people of color must end."

The big picture: Floyd's family filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the city of Minneapolis in July, accusing the officers charged in connection with his killing of "unjustified, excessive, and illegal" use of force.

The settlement was reached the same week that jury selection began in the criminal trial of former police officer Derek Chauvin, who is charged with second-degree murder.

The killing of the 46-year-old Black man in police custody last May set off mass protests around the world, after a video went viral showing Chauvin with his knee on Floyd's neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds before his death.

What they're saying: “Our family is grateful for all those who care so deeply about George’s life and our loss, and this agreement is a necessary step for all of us to begin to get some closure," Rodney Floyd, George Floyd's brother, said in a news release. 

"George’s legacy for those who loved him will always be his spirit of optimism that things can get better, and we hope this agreement does just that — that it makes things a little better in Minneapolis and holds up a light for communities around the country,” he added.

For more stories like this, subscribe to the Axios Twin Cities newsletter, designed to help readers get smarter, faster on the most consequential news unfolding in their own backyard.

Minneapolis reaches record $27 million settlement with George Floyd's family

It comes the same week that jury selection began in the trial of Derek Chauvin.

<p>The Minneapolis City Council on Friday approved a $27 million settlement with the family of George Floyd, with $500,000 to be set aside for funding in his former community.</p><p><strong>Why it matters: </strong>Ben Crump, the attorney for the Floyd family, called it the largest pretrial civil rights settlement ever and said in a statement that it &quot;sends a powerful message that Black lives do matter and police brutality against people of color must end.&quot;</p>

Minneapolis 911 dispatcher Jena Scurry said she felt a "gut instinct" that "something was not right" as she watched police officers hold George Floyd on the ground with a knee on his neck.

Why it matters: Scurry is the first witness to testify in the nationally televised trial of former officer Derek Chauvin, who faces murder and manslaughter charges.

"I first asked if the screens were frozen," Scurry said today. "I was told that it was not frozen."

Audio from her call with a police supervisory sergeant, to notify him of police use of force per department rules, was played in court today.

"[Y]ou can call me a snitch if you want to, but we have the cameras up," she told the sergeant, who didn't immediately respond to the scene, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported last June.

"I don't know if they had to use force or not, but they got something out of the back of the squad, and all of them sat on this man, so I don't know if they needed you or not, but they haven't said anything to me yet," she said.

Between the lines: "Chauvin’s trial is being livestreamed, a first in Minnesota, by order of the judge and over the objections of the prosecution," AP notes.

"Judge Peter Cahill ordered that cameras be allowed largely because of the pandemic and the required social distancing that meant there would be almost no room for spectators in the courtroom."

The bottom line: Prosecutor Jerry Blackwell said "the state will prove that Chauvin's conduct was a 'substantial cause' of Floyd's death and inflicted 'without regard for Mr. Floyd's life,'" the Minneapolis Star Tribune notes.

Chauvin attorney Eric Nelson countered by arguing that Chauvin “did exactly what he was trained to do over the course of his 19-year career.”

911 dispatcher testimony at Chauvin trial: "Something was not right"

"I first asked if the screens were frozen," said Jena Scurry. "I was told that it was not frozen."

Screenshot via WashPost livestream on YouTube

<p>Minneapolis 911 dispatcher Jena Scurry said she felt a &quot;gut instinct&quot; that &quot;something was not right&quot; as she watched police officers hold George Floyd on the ground with a knee on his neck.</p><p><strong>Why it matters:</strong> Scurry is the first witness to testify in the nationally televised trial of former officer Derek Chauvin, who faces murder and manslaughter charges.</p>

Philonise Floyd, the brother of the late George Floyd, revealed on NBC's "Today" that President Biden called him and his family on Monday "to let us know he was praying for us and hoping everything would come out to be ok."

Driving the news: The jury in former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin's murder trial is deliberating on Tuesday, after several weeks of witness presentations and arguments.

Philonise Floyd was the only member of the Floyd family to take the stand, where he gave an emotional testimony about the role his brother played in his family and their community growing up.

"He knows how it is to lose a family member, and he knows the process of what we're going through," Philonise Floyd said about Biden, who also called the family after George Floyd's death last year.

The big picture: "We just want everybody to be peaceful," Philonise Floyd told NBC's Craig Melvin when asked about the potential for violent protests after the verdict, which could come as early as Tuesday.

"I'm optimistic about everything," he said about what he expects out of the verdict. "I just feel that in America, if a Black man can’t get justice for this, what can a Black man get justice for?"

"Hopefully it will be the way that the world wants to see it, because the video is facts and it's proof of what happened," he added.

Go deeper: Jurors resume deliberations as the nation awaits Chauvin verdict

George Floyd's brother says Biden called him ahead of Chauvin verdict

"He knows how it is to lose a family member."

<p>Philonise Floyd, the brother of the late George Floyd, revealed on NBC&#x27;s &quot;Today&quot; that President Biden called him and his family on Monday &quot;to let us know he was praying for us and hoping everything would come out to be ok.&quot;</p><p><strong>Driving the news: </strong>The jury in former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin&#x27;s murder trial is <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="deliberating" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/jury-deliberations-chauvin-trial-minneapolis-79b40ca5-ba9f-475a-b499-c3db2116308c.html" data-vars-content-id="63b65bfb-9d99-4243-a7ab-873b8701ec37" data-vars-headline="George Floyd&#x27;s brother says Biden called him ahead of Chauvin verdict" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/jury-deliberations-chauvin-trial-minneapolis-79b40ca5-ba9f-475a-b499-c3db2116308c.html" target="_self">deliberating</a> on Tuesday, after several weeks of witness presentations and arguments.</p>

Axios

Featured stories

How Minneapolis police initially described George Floyd's murder

George Floyd's brother says Biden called him ahead of Chauvin verdict

The Derek Chauvin trial heads to the jury

911 dispatcher testimony at Chauvin trial: "Something was not right"

Minneapolis reaches record $27 million settlement with George Floyd's family