Hennepin County Medical Examiner Officially Rules George Floyd’s Cause of Death a Homicide

The Hennepin County, Minnesota coroner’s office has ruled that George Floyd’s death was a homicide that was the result of a heart attack complicated by the police officers’ violent subduing tactics including one police officer’s extended pinning of Floyd’s neck to the pavement.

CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, read the official report from the county, in which Minneapolis sits. One Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin, since fired, has been charged with third-degree murder for Floyd’s death, which has sparked nationwide protests about police brutality and violence.

“We are getting breaking news coming into the situation room right now. An official statement from the medical examiner’s office in Hennepin County, Minnesota,” Blitzer said. “The official report says George Floyd’s death was a homicide resulting from being restrained. The cause of death is cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint & neck compression. He died of cardiac arrest while being restrained by law enforcement officers.”

Laura Coates, a CNN legal analyst, weighed in on the implications of the coroner’s report.

“It seems to be in line with what we thought happened,” Coates noted before clarifying. “They are not saying anything about liability on the civil side or talking about somebody in the conviction way as in this is a person who should be convicted. They don’t make an actual assessment about the legal conclusions.”

“She’s making a connection between the officer’s conduct” and Floyd’s death, Coates said of the coroner. “Surely, combining all the factors and the video evidence, this case is getting stronger in favor of the murder charges.”

Watch the video above, via CNN.