Bay Area lawmakers were quick to call police killing of George Floyd ‘murder’

Updated: May 29, 2020 8:03 p.m.

WASHINGTON — Bay Area politicians are using no uncertain terms to describe the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, calling police actions “murder” even before charges were filed against a fired officer Friday.

The direct word choice from prominent lawmakers, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Kamala Harris, show a growing willingness on the part of Democrats to label police brutality as criminal.

Pelosi called Floyd’s death “a crime” early this week, and in her remarks to reporters on Thursday said there was no doubt it was murder.

“We did see a murder on TV, and it wasn’t self-defense,” the San Francisco Democrat said.

Pelosi stopped short of calling for charges, but Harris did not, tweeting that the officers involved should be arrested.

“Our country has a long history of slavery, Jim Crow, lynchings, segregation, and discrimination,” the California Democrat wrote. “The injustices of the past live on in our institutions today. We need systemic change. Black Americans are fed up. The officer who killed George Floyd must be arrested for murder.”

Our country has a long history of slavery, Jim Crow, lynchings, segregation, and discrimination. The injustices of the past live on in our institutions today. We need systemic change.

Black Americans are fed up. The officer who killed George Floyd must be arrested for murder.

— Kamala Harris (@SenKamalaHarris) May 29, 2020

Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, similarly tweeted that Floyd “was murdered by police,” and Rep. Jackie Speier, D-San Mateo, wrote that he was “murdered at the hands of law enforcement.”

Later Friday, Minnesota authorities arrested the former officer filmed with his knee on Floyd’s neck, Derek Chauvin, and charged him with third-degree murder. A prosecutor said other officers could be charged as well.

Police stopped Floyd on Monday after a 911 call about him buying cigarettes with counterfeit money. In an encounter shown on video, Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck as he pleaded for his life and said he couldn’t breathe, before he eventually lost consciousness. Paramedics and emergency room staff were unable to revive him.

The video ignited a firestorm and days of protest in the Twin Cities. Protests also took place in Oakland on Friday. Floyd’s death drew widespread condemnation, including from President Trump, who once told police, “Please, don’t be too nice,” while arresting suspects.

Although Trump expressed sympathy, he also tweeted early Friday that protesters were “thugs” and “when the looting starts, the shooting starts,” prompting Twitter to flag the tweet as glorifying violence.

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