Malcolm Gladwell

Because being good at that job relies, maybe more than almost any other profession, on being able to distinguish in the heat of a moment between a hostile act and an ambiguous act. Between someone who is struggling because they can't breathe and someone who is struggling because they're resisting arrest.

Because being good at that job relies, maybe more than almost any other profession, on being able to distinguish in the heat of a moment between a hostile act and an ambiguous act. Between someone who is struggling because they can't breathe and someone who is struggling because they're resisting arrest.

Between someone who says, I'm going to die because they're trying to trick you and someone who says, I'm going to die because they are, in fact, going to die. If you can't do that, then you can only interpret the world one way. Then, in the middle of a fast-evolving situation, when there is new information coming in all the time, you have only one way to interpret it. A threat.

Between someone who says, I'm going to die because they're trying to trick you and someone who says, I'm going to die because they are, in fact, going to die. If you can't do that, then you can only interpret the world one way. Then, in the middle of a fast-evolving situation, when there is new information coming in all the time, you have only one way to interpret it. A threat.

In the course of the investigation into the death of George Floyd, a second case came to light. It happened in 2017, three years earlier. A woman calls 911. She says her son has assaulted her. The police arrive, talk to the woman at length. She says her son is down the hall in his room. In the body cam footage, you can see the officers walk down the hallway.

In the course of the investigation into the death of George Floyd, a second case came to light. It happened in 2017, three years earlier. A woman calls 911. She says her son has assaulted her. The police arrive, talk to the woman at length. She says her son is down the hall in his room. In the body cam footage, you can see the officers walk down the hallway.

The boy is on the floor of his bedroom, on the phone. He's 14. The lead officer in the group is lean, in his 40s, with a passive demeanor. It's Derek Chauvin. The officers enter the room, tell him he's under arrest. He says his mom was drunk. He gets up reluctantly. His voice is calm. He doesn't act out. He's not aggressive.

The boy is on the floor of his bedroom, on the phone. He's 14. The lead officer in the group is lean, in his 40s, with a passive demeanor. It's Derek Chauvin. The officers enter the room, tell him he's under arrest. He says his mom was drunk. He gets up reluctantly. His voice is calm. He doesn't act out. He's not aggressive.

He says his mother had done this before, called the police when she's the one who has a problem. That's why his uncle left the house, he says. He seems genuinely confused as to why he should be the one under arrest. He's a teenager.

He says his mother had done this before, called the police when she's the one who has a problem. That's why his uncle left the house, he says. He seems genuinely confused as to why he should be the one under arrest. He's a teenager.

That's Chauvin.

That's Chauvin.

Chauvin moves towards him, starts beating the boy over the head with his flashlight, opening a wound over his ear that will require stitches, puts him in a chokehold, throws him to the ground, and then things go from bad to much, much worse.

Chauvin moves towards him, starts beating the boy over the head with his flashlight, opening a wound over his ear that will require stitches, puts him in a chokehold, throws him to the ground, and then things go from bad to much, much worse.

Then his mother enters the room.

Then his mother enters the room.

Chauvin crouches down next to the prone boy and puts his knee on the boy's neck. Then he just sits there. There are at least six officers at the scene. At this point, most of them have filed out of the room as if they can't stomach what's happening. One of the remaining officers turns his body cam to the wall. Chauvin keeps his knee on the boy's neck for 15 minutes.

Chauvin crouches down next to the prone boy and puts his knee on the boy's neck. Then he just sits there. There are at least six officers at the scene. At this point, most of them have filed out of the room as if they can't stomach what's happening. One of the remaining officers turns his body cam to the wall. Chauvin keeps his knee on the boy's neck for 15 minutes.

Even after the paramedics arrive and the boy explains to them that he blacked out after he was choked and that his ear is bleeding, Chauvin remains on the boy's neck, frozen. The boy is eventually rescued and he's finally able to get up and walk away. I have watched that body cam footage more times than I can count.

Even after the paramedics arrive and the boy explains to them that he blacked out after he was choked and that his ear is bleeding, Chauvin remains on the boy's neck, frozen. The boy is eventually rescued and he's finally able to get up and walk away. I have watched that body cam footage more times than I can count.