A use-of-force expert has told US jury that the former police officer accused of the murder of George Floyd was “justified” in pinning him to the ground.
Barry Brodd told the trial in Minnesota that Derek Chauvin acted with “objective reasonableness”.
Chauvin is on trial after he knelt on Floyd’s neck during his arrest last May.
He has denied the charges.
Video of Chauvin, a white man, kneeling on the neck of Floyd, a black man, led to worldwide protests against racism and policing in the US.
Tensions in Minnesota are also running after the fatal shooting on Sunday of another black man by a white police officer in a suburb only 16km away from the court where Chauvin’s trial is taking place.
Former police officer Brodd told the court that “the imminent threat” posed by Floyd was a major in his detention.
“I felt that Derek Chauvin was justified and acting with objective reasonableness following Minneapolis police department policy and current standards of law enforcement in his interaction with George Floyd,” he said.
“From a police officer’s standpoint, you don’t have to wait for it to happen. You just have to have a reasonable fear that somebody is going to strike you, stab you, shoot you.”
He added: “It’s easy to sit in an office and judge an officer’s conduct. It’s more of a challenge to put yourself in the officer’s shoes, to try to make an evaluation through what they are feeling, what they’re sensing, the fear they have, and then make a determination.
“Was this a deadly use of force?” asked defence lawyer Eric Nelson.
“No, it was not,” Brodd replied.
He said that the crowd surrounding Floyd during his arrest “posed an unknown threat” and drew Chauvin’s attention away from Floyd.
