Memorial Day, 2020 | Part 2
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What happened six days after George Floyd's death?
Six days after the death of George Floyd.
Who was present during the investigation?
A small group of people gather in a room somewhere in downtown Minneapolis.
So, okay, so let's just, we're going to try to run this like we typically run these, right? I'm just going to identify everybody in the room here for the record, okay?
Two investigators from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, one FBI agent, two attorneys, and the first police officer to arrive at the scene at the corner of 38th and Chicago that day, Thomas Lane. He's there to give a statement about what happened. If you've ever watched videos of the death of George Floyd, Lane is the tall one, 6'7", right next to Derek Chauvin, restraining Floyd's legs.
What was Thomas Lane's perspective on the arrest?
I guess just tell us in your own words with as much detail as possible what happened from your perspective.
Okay. We were dispatched to a forgery and progress report at the Tough Foods.
I believe in the call notes it said that the suspect was still on scene in a Mercedes. We drove to the call. We didn't activate our lights and sirens just because I believe we were relatively close and We got there and entered the building, entered Cup Boots of Business. There's a staff member there that said, you know, they're still here. He goes, he was holding a bill and he goes, they gave me this. It's a big 20. He pointed across the street and they're like, he's in the car over there. You know, go get him before he drives off. So I said, you know, and he started walking out. I was like, you know, just head back in. We'll take care of it.
Lane and his partner, Alexander King, walk across the street to the parked Mercedes. There are two men in the front seats. Lane knocks on the window with his flashlight. The men turn and see the officers.
They all started kind of digging underneath the seat. It looked like they were reaching for something. And I said that to King. I said, they're moving around quite a bit as I was coming across the street. I walked up to the driver's side of the vehicle, I knocked on the glass, and the driver was sitting with his hand down below the seat, kind of leaning forward like this. And I said, let me see your other hand. And I directed him, let me see your other hand. He didn't do that. And he was just, you know, oh, it's no big deal or whatever. And he kept his hand on there. And he just glanced back, so I took my gun out and I said, let me see your other fucking hand. Put your hand up. Gave commands to do that. I'm not sure how many, I think they gave a few.
And I don't know why, but he quickly went like this, like pulled his hand out real fast. And I kind of like took a step back and was like, Jesus, what are you doing?
My name is Malcolm Gladwell. You're listening to revisionist history, my podcast about things overlooked and misunderstood. This episode is part two of our examination of Derek Chauvin's murder of George Floyd. In this episode, I want to look at the case from a different perspective. through the eyes of the first police officer to approach George Floyd, Thomas Lane, who at the time had been a fully-fledged member of the Minneapolis Police Department for only four days. May 25th, 2020 was Memorial Day, a lovely Minneapolis summer evening. People are outside, walking about. It's just after 8 p.m. when Lane and his partner pull up to the Cup Foods on the corner of 38th and Chicago. Lane pulls Floyd out of his car, handcuffs him, sits him on the sidewalk, takes his information, then walks Floyd over to the squad car and puts him in the backseat. Only Floyd doesn't want to get in the backseat, so Lane and his partner King try to force him into it. Then a second squad car pulls up.
Derek Chauvin gets out. Floyd is struggling so much with Lane and King that he cuts his mouth, badly enough that Lane calls an ambulance. Lane thinks Floyd is on drugs. He's acting erratically, and they found a glass pipe on him when they searched him. They decide to keep him restrained so he can't move or hurt himself anymore. They call EMS a second time and upgrade their request to Code 3, the most urgent level. Life-threatening. Immediate response. Lights and sirens. So far, all of this is nothing out of the ordinary.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What happened six days after George Floyd's death?
0:11–0:24
2
Who was present during the investigation?
0:24–1:08
3
What was Thomas Lane's perspective on the arrest?
1:08–5:20
4
What is excited delirium, and how is it relevant?
5:20–9:48
5
How did Thomas Lane communicate concerns to Chauvin?
9:48–15:20
6
What challenges did Lane face as a rookie officer?
15:20–18:03
7
How can police culture affect decision-making?
18:03–21:25
8
What are the implications of complaint distributions in police departments?
21:25–35:40