‘Slow journey to justice’: trial of three ex-police officers involved in George Floyd murder begins

The bitter arctic blast, which had Minnesota temperatures below 0F last week, didn't stop protestors from hosting a rally as the three lesser-known police officers involved in the killing of George Floyd faced their turn in the courtroom.

A caravan of two dozen cars occupied the length of the block outside the courthouse in the state capital St Paul last week, as jury selection began in the federal civil rights trial of Tou Thao, J Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane.

Opening statements are expected on Monday, in the second trial of the closely-watched process of legal accountability after white former Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of murdering Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, and admitted violating his civil rights in May 2020, sparking the largest racial reckoning in America's recent history.

"The day that George Floyd was killed, in addition to Derek Chauvin as the officer that took George Floyd's life, there were three other human beings that were there. They wore badges and guns, too. They were officers, too," local activist Toshira Garraway told the bundled-up protesters standing in a tight circle outside of their cars.

She added: "Not one of the four officers that was there had compassion and empathy enough to intervene."

The twin cities of Minneapolis and St Paul are now braced for the latest trial.

"Today is another milestone in the long, slow journey to justice for George Floyd," Ben Crump, the civil rights lawyer who represented his relatives, said in a statement: "This trial will be another painful experience for the Floyd family, who must once more relive his grueling death in excruciating detail."