George Floyd’s Family to Release Independent Autopsy

George Floyd in a file photo. Courtesy of Ben Crump Law Firm via CNN

The family of George Floyd, the black man whose death sparked sometimes violent demonstrations in numerous U.S. cities, said they will release the results of an independent autopsy on Monday.

Forensic pathologist Dr. Michael Baden, who carried out an independent autopsy of disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, was one of two doctors hired by Floyd’s family to carry out a review. It came after prosecutors said a preliminary finding on his cause of death found that the combined factors of him being restrained by an officer, who had a knee on his neck, as well as possible intoxicants and underlying health problems, such as heart disease, likely contributed to his death.

A 911 call obtained by news outlets said Floyd was suspected of having counterfeit money and seemed “awfully drunk” and “not in control of himself.”

Prosecutors said that the autopsy “revealed no physical findings that support a diagnosis of traumatic asphyxia or strangulation.”

A former Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin, is accused of keeping his knee on Floyd’s neck for about 8 minutes. A video of the incident went viral on social media, which included Floyd saying he can’t breathe.

Floyd’s family confirmed Baden’s involvement and the scheduled release of the autopsy to The Associated Press.

Benjamin Crump, a high-profile attorney representing Floyd’s family, told CBS News that Chauvin may have known Floyd beforehand. The two had worked at a nightclub as recently as last year.

Rioters set fire to a Wells fargo bank across the street from the Minneapolis Police 5th Precinct during the fourth night of protests and violence following the death of George Floyd, in Minneapolis, Minn., on May 29, 2020. Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times

“[Floyd’s] family has been notified by the owner of a club that Derek Chauvin was an off-duty police officer while George Floyd was a security guard. And so they had to overlap,” Crump remarked. “That is going to be an interesting aspect to this case and hopefully upgrading these charges to first-degree murder because we believe he knew who George Floyd was.”

It comes as Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz signed an executive order on Monday to extend a nighttime curfew in Minneapolis and other areas amid days of looting, arson, vandalism, and rioting.

“The curfew on Friday and Saturday night allowed our law enforcement to target those who meant to do harm to our communities,” said Walz in a statement. “Law enforcement made several arrests and seized weapons, narcotics, long guns, handguns, magazines and knives. We have reason to believe that bad actors continue to infiltrate the rightful protests of George Floyd’s murder, which is why we are extending the curfew by one day.”