Opening arguments begin Monday in the case of Derek Chauvin, a former Minneapolis police officer accused of killing George Floyd in a racially tinged case that sparked protests and riots across the US. Chauvin could face decades in prison if convicted of charges of 2nd and 3rd-degree murder and manslaughter.

The case will centre on the question of what killed George Floyd. Was it Chauvin’s knee on Floyd’s neck, as the prosecution contends, or was it a combination of drugs, Floyd’s heart condition, and Covid-19, as the defense insists?  The city has already paid the Floyd family $27-million in a legal settlement but admitted no wrongdoing. – The witness list comprises 400 names. Only one Floyd family member will be allowed in court at a time.