Following the completion of the concluding rebuttal from the prosecuting attorney in the George Floyd murder trial, where former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin is charged with murdering the 46-year-old Black man, the jury retired on Monday to begin its deliberations in the closely watched case.  

Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill issued final instructions to the jury ahead of the verdict of the immensely high-profile case, AFP reported.

“You must be absolutely fair,” Cahill said. “Consider and weigh the evidence and apply the law.”

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Chauvin, 45, is charged with murder and manslaughter over Floyd’s May 25, 2020 death, which sparked global protests against racial injustice and police brutality and is being seen as a landmark test of police accountability.

In his closing statements, prosecutor Jerry Blackwell said that the “biggest departure” of evidence by the defense — the suggestion that Floyd’s enlarged heart may have caused his death.

“You are told, for example, that Mr Floyd died, that Mr Floyd died because his heart was too big. You heard that testimony. And now having seen all the evidence and having heard on the evidence, you know the truth, and the truth of the matter is that the reason George Floyd is dead is because Mr Chauvin’s heart was too small.” 

Earlier, prosecuting attorney Steve Schleicher also urged jurors on Monday to convict Chauvin and said “this case is exactly what you thought when you saw it first, when you saw that video.”

“You can believe your eyes,” Schleicher said. “It’s exactly what you knew, it’s what you felt in your gut, it’s what you now know in your heart.”

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Chauvin was captured on video kneeling on the neck of Floyd, who was pinned facedown handcuffed on the ground for more than nine minutes complaining “I can’t breathe.”

“This wasn’t policing, this was murder,” Schleicher said. “Nine minutes and 29 seconds of shocking abuse of authority.

“The defendant is guilty of all three counts. And there’s no excuse.”

The jury in Derek Chauvin’s trial heard from 45 witnesses during the trial and were shown bystander and police footage of George Floyd’s final moments.

Once they reach a verdict, it would be read “out loud in the courtroom in your presence,” Judge Peter Cahill said.