Transcripts For MSNBCW The Beat With Ari Melber 20200528

Give it just a minute before i blow over. We share with the fbi and we share with our state partners who are conducting parallel but independent investigations so that is clear. We have two different investigations and conclusions and recommendations that will come from those to each of our respective offices, but we share an unwavering commitment to see that this investigation is done right, that its done forthwith, that we act with dispatch and that we live up to the standards the community demands. Our highest priority is that justice will be served. With that, i am going to close my comments and turn it over to special agent in charge reiner drolshagen from the fbi. Thank you, erica. Good afternoon. My anyone that is reiner droshagen. Im the special agent in charge of the minneapolis field office. Echoing u. S. Attorneys comments, id like to say i express my complete condolences to the floyd family. Id also like to express my sympathy to the citizens of minnesota as there is extreme frustration, anger, and sadness. I also want to thank chief art arredondo of Minneapolis Police department. He reached out to me in the middle of the night and requested our assistance. His call enabled me to immediately reach out to the u. S. Attorneys office to enlist their assistance. And as such, we were able to open an investigation in a matter of a few hours after the incident. Our role in this investigation is to investigate allegations of willful violations of federal civil rights. The fbi team is following the path where the facts will lead us. We are conducting a swift yet meticulous investigation. In less than 72 hours, much work has been done, but i assure you there is much more to be accomplished. I want to ensure that you understand we respond to cases like these as quickly as possible. We will follow a case to conclusion in partnership with our state partner, the bureau of criminal apprehension. The fbi is a fact gathering agency. We collect facts, and we need your help. Were asking everyone that was present before, during, and after the incident to come forward to help us build the best picture of what occurred. Each little piece of the puzzle helps us complete the big picture. If you have any information or if you have any videos or you know of anyone who can help us with this, i encourage you to ask them to contact 1800callfbi. Again, im encouraging you to reach out to 1800callfbi. No tip is too small. Thank you. Good afternoon. Im mike freeman, Hennepin County attorney. We are the principle prosecuting agency for the state and the criminal side. Initially, i want to say that my thoughts and those of my office continue to be with the family and friends of george floyd. They know they are hurting over this senseless death. The manager of our Victims Services division has been in touch with George Floyds family on several occasions and is keeping them updated on what is happening in this case. Theyre aware that the Minnesota Bureau of criminal apprehension, better known as the bca, the Hennepin County medical examiner, the Hennepin County Attorneys Office are moving as quickly and thoroughly as possible. Ive also been in direct consultations with governor tim walz, with attorney general Keith Ellison, and others in the state, the city, and the county with discussions on this case. As many of you know, the Hennepin County Attorneys Office is one of very few Prosecution Offices in the United States who have successfully charged and convicted and obtained a guilty verdict against a Police Officer for unreasonable use of deadly force. We have developed a detailed plan for that prosecution, and with the bca a detailed plan for investigation. Our office has been flooded with calls, as many as a thousand a day, as well as email and social media from people in this jurisdiction, in this state, and throughout the country. The main question is what are you going to do about the murder of george floyd . Well, i just described what were going to do. We are going to investigate it as expeditiously, as thoroughly and completely as justice demands. Sometimes that takes a little time. And we ask people to be patient. We have to do this right, and thats what were do. I also want to tell you that our office has led the nation in openness on these types of cases. When we decide to charge an officer, we put the criminal complaint on our website. If we decide that the evidence does not support a criminal charge, we put our report and all our evidence on the website for all to see. When we make the decision in this case, we will do the same. What i can assure the citizens of minnesota, we will do it as quickly as we can do it well do it as quickly as possible. I think drew evans from the bca is next. Drew . Thank you, county attorney freeman. My name is drew evans. Im the superintendent of the Minnesota Bureau of criminal apprehension. First id like to share with my colleagues here in expressing my deepest thoughts and sympathies to the family of george floyd, the heartbreak that theyre going through and the community as a whole. This is a difficult time for our entire community as they mourn his death. The bureau of criminal apprehension began this investigation immediately after this incident occurred when we were contacted by the Minneapolis Police department. Agents were deployed, including our crime scene immediately began gathering evidence, talking to witnesses, and then working immediately with the county Attorneys Office, discussing our findings and what we had at that time. Next over the night, as was indicated, the fbi was contacted. I spoke with chief arredondo. He informed he was contacting them, and that was a contact we all welcome in this process. Were working very collaboratively together through this process. The agents are working closely together. Weve deployed numerous resources. We brought in agents all over the state, recognizing the importance of an expeditious, quick investigation that still thorough, independent and unbiased by all of the organizations. Those findings will be turned over to the county on the states side and on the federal side as noted by the states Attorneys Office. The same thing we share, as the fbi did, we want any citizen, anybody who was there that witnessed this information, that has information that would be helpful to our investigation to either call the fbi tips line or 6517937000, which is the bc operation center. My perspective is we want citizens to go wherever they are most comfortable, whichever line they are so, that we get all of the information in this case so we can conduct the most thorough investigation possible. And with that, i think well turn it over to the u. S. Attorney. And so at this point, were going to open it up for questions. I can tell you ill start by saying weve got questions too, and were getting answers to those. Were doing our best. Were digging in, but we do. And i want to echo what my Law Enforcement partners said. We need the communitys help. There were folks there on the scene, folks that we couldnt identify necessarily at the time. We need to know who they are. Come forward. If you have a video, please share it. We want to do as quickly as we can a thorough investigation to get answers to those questions. And i know i saw the firsthand going up was in front of me. Maam, you had a question . Yeah, sorry. Tonight always saying what you guys are announcing today, they were hoping to make charges about getting charges. Are you worried that thats going to ignite more riots tonight . My hope is that getting it out through you that the community will understand that we are taking this seriously, that were working as quickly as possible so the community understands we dont we dont announce investigations typically. As you and the media know, its unusual for us to come forward and tell you about investigations. As the United States attorney, were counseled that we are not to talk about that until the time of the conviction typically, or in some cases perhaps charges. It was really its really imperative that the community understands how seriously were taking this and how quickly and swiftly we are moving on this. And so my hope with that is that people understand peaceful protests are always acceptable. That is the cornerstone of our Justice System is that people have the right to say how they feel and to talk about their feelings and to protest peacefully. But the obstruction and the destruction of property and harm to individuals has got to stop. We are one minnesota. Were at our best when were at our worst, and weve got to come together and stop the needless and unnecessary destruction of property and harm to human life. Sir . May i add something . You may. Yes. This state is wellknown and has a strong reputation for firm and thorough First Amendment advocation. We support peaceful demonstrations. I had a long talk today with reverend jesse jackson, who came at the request of attorney general Keith Ellison and the governor, and i believe reverend jackson will be speaking and asking for peaceful protests today. Peaceful protest is good. It advocates our rights and it also calls forth the witnesses that the United States attorney wants to come forward. Violence is not. Violence hampers our case. It takes valuable Police Resources away from our investigation, and it also harms innocent people who had nothing to do with that. It gets in the way of our work. So were asking, please, please, say what you need to say. Demonstrate how you need to do. That is in our constitution, and all of us believe in that. But please, dont destroy an innocent persons property who had nothing to do with it. Part of the problem is the video goes on for seven minutes. He is clearly struggling to breathe during that time, and i think people will be hardpressed to understand how you cant bring charges at least against the officer who had his knee on that mans neck. Its a violation of my ethics to talk and evaluate evidence before we announce our charging decision, and i will not do that. I will say this. That that video is graphic and horrific and terrible, and no person should do that. But my job in the end is to prove that he violated a criminal statute, and there is other evidence that does not support a criminal charge. We need to wade through all of that evidence and come to a meaningful determination, and we are doing that to the best of our ability. When it comes to the African American community, and a lot of us actually called for peace. You guys are asking for them to be patient. Theyre saying there was no patience when it came to george floyd, when he begged and pleaded for his life. What message will you give us to take back to the African American community to bring peace and to assure them that justice is going to be served . I bring the same message that African American attorney general the state of minnesota ea Keith Ellison is bringing. Im bringing the same message as the reverend jesse jackson. We have to do this right. We have to prove it in a court of law. And i will just point to you the comparison to what happened in baltimore in the gray case. It was a rush to charge. It was a rush to justice, and all of those people were found not guilty. I will not rush to justice. Im going to do this right, and those folks who know me in the African Community know i will do my very level best, but i will not rush justice because justice cannot be rushed. Thank you for that. It was wonderful to hear you say that you came down with other members of the community to ask for peace. And that is the most thats probably the most positive thing ive heard here all day. So i cannot begin to thank you enough for that. And to the extent you can share that and you can share the integrity and honesty of what were doing and trying to tell you whats going on, please do, because we need you. We need the community. But its really important that we emphasize that everybody, everybody in the United States is entitled to due process of law. And due process of law requires us as prosecutors, as Law Enforcement officers, to make sure that weve done a careful investigation. And it requires us, as i told you, i tried as a judge, i presided over hundreds of cases, including firstdegree murder cases. I cannot emphasize enough how important it is that all your ducks are in a row before you make that charging decision. You cant undo what youve done if you rush. But if you take that time, youre going to do it right the first time and youre going to get it done the first time. I have a question about National Guard coming in now. There is fear and worry that this is going to escalate. Well, first off, the decision to call the National Guard is the governors decision, and i support his decision. Second, you know, since ive been Hennepin County attorney, try to be the best prosecutor i can be and run the best office. And try to stay out of other peoples business, okay. So on the streets in the Law Enforcement is not my business directly. I do encourage people not to do Dangerous Things and to harm other people or property. But i can say to you that we just cant rush this. Ive been involved in a number of these investigations. The bca has got their most veteran people, and they are good. I have leading the Prosecution Team the two prosecutors that brought justice in the Justine Damon case. And as i said to you earlier, its one of the few successful murder convictions of a Police Officer overusing force in the country. And i had a lot of pressure to hurry that, to do it quickly. You cant do that. These need to be done right. Please, give me and give United States attorney the time to do this right, and we will bring you justice. I promise. Police officers cooperating a lot of frustration about people who are watching that video and saying if it had been me, i would have been in jail. If it were a young African American man, they would have been in jail. What do you say to them . That is the source of anger and frustration as many of you know from covering these kind of cases for a long time, each of the facts are different and each of them have to be addressed differently. I assure you that if the person who had committed the act, and i do not condone or respect the act done by the Police Officer to mr. Floyd. That was excessive and that was wrong. The question in my business is it criminal . Thats what i have to prove. And, you know, there are cases that you can quickly and easily evaluate. Most of the case, particularly cop use of force cases are specifically more complex and have to be done right, and were committed to doing it right. Sir, you. How many Police Officers i want to i want to answer that question as well, if i may. You know, its important for i 100 agree with you that is the question, right . It is a question that people in my office are asking. Its a question we were all feeling the pain of watching that. But this is what needs to be understood is and i know you all understand this, but to the extent im speaking to the community, Police Officers by the nature of their job have the authority to use a certain amount of force when theyre executing their duties faithfully and honestly and in accordance with our policies. So a Police Officer, a Law Enforcement officer has within the latitude of their scope of duty the ability to use the right amount of force, but not Excessive Force. Not Excessive Force as defined by the law. And so that is what we are looking at with respect to any federal criminal violation of civil rights is that issue of Excessive Force. One more question, one more. Erica at your office in particular i can tell you that every United States attorney involved, all my colleagues that are out there, we are vested with doing whats right for the state at the time. Of course, were part of the department of justice. William barr to the Deputy Attorney general who then reports to the attorney general. But every United States attorney is given the discretion in their community to pursue the charges and to follow the leads where they are and to pursue the case as they deem appropriate. I am, however, keeping my boss in communication, in briefing so that he understands the investigation thats going on here in the state of minnesota. I should have made clear too, i know it was in our statement that we issued last night, but on our team of experienced trial attorneys, which are the most experienced in my office, i can tell you ive been reviewing the evidence with my criminal chief, with my first assistant, United States attorney, with my deputy criminal chief, were all in there together. But were also partnering with the Civil Rights Division from the department of justice. The Civil Rights Division has an experience of doing these cases nationally. They bring with that expertise of understanding the requirements of, you know, 18 usc 242, which is the violation of law that were specifically addressing. So yes, we are partnering with the department of justice to use their expertise and their resources, but we are leading the investigation and we are working collaboratively with our state and local partners and federal partners. The president is actively monitoring the situation. But i have not spoken to the president directly, no. People coming out here, you tell us what the wait was about . I cannot. I can only ask you to trust me that it mattered and that i hope that i can fill you in on that at the appropriate time which i hope is soon. You obviously didnt call us down here for that. You called for something. Can you detail what you were calling for . Im going to say the same thing again. But i appreciate the tenacity of asking the question again. I would not have needlessly wasted your time. It was important that the community understand that we are actively involved in this investigation. We are working around the clock. We have been for the last 72 hours and will continue to do so to see that justice is done. Again, were going to do it right, but we will act with dispatch. And i will keep all of you informed as soon as there is another development. And i will make sure that you, i promise, do not have to wait again. Well have it timed right. Okay, thank you, everybody for coming. Thank you. All right. Hello there, everyone. Im Ayman Mohyeldin in for ari melber tonight on msnbc. You were watching a press conference there with state and federal officials giving a briefing on the Ongoing Investigation into the killing and death of george floyd that has now set off a whole set of motions and protest in the city of minneapolis. You heard there from federal Law Enforcement officials saying that their investigation is ongoing. Theyre working as quickly as possible. Interesting enough, you heard the u. S. Attorney there say at the very top of her comments she thought that there would be some developments that she was going to be announcing, certainly none were announced during that press briefing. She did promise if there were any developments, she would come back and brief reporters. You also heard from the county attorney there Michael Freeman giving an update really on how his office is proceeding to either consider a charge against the Police Officer or not. He says they want to do this by the book. They want to do this slowly but methodically and make sure they get all of the details. We have a lot to get to this hour. Were going start right now, though, by bringing in with us minnesotas attorney general Keith Ellison. Mr. Ellison, its great to have you with us. I assume you were watching that press, like the rest of us were. Let me get your reaction to what you heard from federal and state officials. Well, it communicates to me that they are serious, that they know they have to address the public and the press, that the questions are coming, and they deserve answers. I think its important for them to assure people that this is not something thats going to get brushed under the rug, that this is a serious matter in both state and federal criminal justice leaders are digging in deep. I will say that i believe that we will be seeing an expeditious investigation, but at the same time, that may mean days and weeks as opposed to months and years. Sometimes these things really do stretch out. But i dont think thats what were going to see here. But at the same time, an immediate imminent outcome, i dont think is what were going to see because i think that these professionals are more concerned with getting it right than getting it fast. There is pressure to move quickly, though. There is some thought that if a charge came, that that might slowdown some of the protesting, but according to protesting really should not dictate the speed or the thoroughness of the investigation. But i think that they know that an expeditious investigation is what the public expects. Well get to the protests in just a second, but i do have a few questions specifically about what was said in that News Conference. I want to get your thoughts on. As you mentioned, you heard the u. S. Attorney say we thought we would have another development that we could tell you about. Unfortunately, we dont at this point. Im curious to get your thoughts. Any insight into what that development that the u. S. Attorney referenced there was . No, i really couldnt speak on that issue. I will tell you that everybody is gathering every bit of video that they can. Theyre trying to get through all the witnesses that were there. Theyre trying to see if there is any videotape they dont know about. Theyre trying to make sure they are doing backgrounds on the individuals involved. They dont have the medical examiners report, to my knowledge. That might be an important piece of information. And so, you know, its going according to the proper protocols. Its not being delayed at all. Its important for people to know that the Minneapolis Police are not investigating the Minneapolis Police. That has been moved to the Minnesota Bureau of criminal apprehension. So no, i dont have any special thing to share about what they had in mind, but i can just tell you that this is a situation where you dont want to go for a quick arrest. It might make people feel better about justice, and then the case goes south. What you want to do is take the time to make sure that these charges, if they are brought forward, stick, and that will be the important thing. As youre probably aware, a lot of people who have already watched the sevenminute video of the Police Officer kneeling on the neck of george floyd say that in itself constitutes Excessive Force. You can bring a charge against the Police Officer and still gather evidence. Those two are not mutually exclusive. That happens all the time. People are arrested, theyre charged and more evidence comes to light. The idea, though, that he has not been yet arrested has a lot of people concerned that there may be an attempt to find a justification why a charge has not been brought. I mean, Michael Freeman just said right now in the News Conference, he said there is evidence that does not support a criminal case. Well, you know, im not sure. I heard that statement too. I dont think that what he cement that there is evidence of exoneration. I think that he what he is saying is that he knows that clever defense counsel are going to try to poke holes in every single link in the prosecutorial chain, and he wants to make sure every single one of this is front. They might throw a lot of stuff out there and you as a prosecutor want to be able to address every one of those things. That is really what i think he was referring to. Let me ask you about the protests tonight. Obviously, as you mentioned, as others have mentioned, in the absence of any kind of meaningful step forward by the Law Enforcement official, people are still rightfully angry about how this has played out. How are officials in that state going to keep the peace tonight . What is the onus of responsibility on Law Enforcement and city officials and state officials this evening . Well, first of all, we want to appeal to people to protest peacefully, to understand that, you know, the cause of george floyd is noble and just. And getting real justice for him is the right thing to do, and then bringing forward systemic, sustainable change is the right thing to do. You know, so peaceful, powerful militant protest is absolutely appropriate. But when the conversation gets diverted to, you know, broken windows and broken things, that is not helpful to the cause. I will say this. There is some disturbing video of some man dressed in all black with a face mask and an umbrella. He doesnt look like any protester i have ever seen. I am concerned that there may be provocateurs in the crowd who are doing a lot of the damage. I say to the protesters, if you see suspicious people doing damage and theyre not carrying signs, theyre not chanting, theyre just breaking stuff and trying to hide their identity, take pictures of these people. Theyre not helping you. Theyre not helping the cause. Online there is a Youtube Video of one guy, and i urge all the protesters, dont let somebody tear down the good reputation of your righteous protest. Take pictures of these people who may well be provocateurs. That evidence is on youtube. I urge people to take a look at it and see if they can identify that guy. We know that the four officers involved in that situation obviously now have been fired. Minneapolis Police Policy does actually say that officers have a, quote, duty to intervene if they see Excessive Force being used. Did the other officers. Right. At this scene fail in this duty . You have innocent bystanders who are watching to say he cannot breathe, and the Police Officer, not the one involved in putting his knee on the neck of george floyd, but the others, theyre not even intervening. Well, you know, the truth is the victim was saying i cant breathe. Onlookers were saying he cant breathe. It looked very apparent to me that the man cannot breathe. He said my stomach hurts. My whole body hurts. He said theyre going to kill me. He said so many things that seem very clearly to indicate that he was in distress and needed to have that knee off of his neck and get assistance. Didnt happen. And it was very disturbing. Very zurich. Its why this particular case has really captured the attention of the nation, because it just seems like such a callous disregard of human life. And thats whats in front of all of us. We all are seeing it. Were all witnessing it, and were all haunted by it. We should also note as we heard this there from the u. S. Attorney and the attorney general and the president of the United States are being briefed on this. It has captured the attention of people not just in this country, but around the world. Minnesota attorney general Keith Ellison, sir, thank you very much for joining us this evening. I appreciate your time. Thank you, sir. All right. Nbcs Shaquille Brewster is live outside the third precinct in minneapolis tonight where i can see behind him already crowds are gathering. Shaquille, i know its a little early for some of the information from the News Conference to trickle to the crowd out there, but whats your sense about how things will play out in the coming hours now that we have heard from officials and it does not seem like there will be any arrests or charges this evening . I can tell you, amyman, that is not what people, protesters wanted to hear. I dont know if that has made their way down to the protesters who are here, who are protesting. But that news has not gotten to them. What youve been hearing, their main message for several days now is they want the officers involved arrested. They want the people the officer who was on that tape, that tape that really went viral earlier this week, they want to see an immediate arrest because they believe that is enough. Thats all you need to see. Just to set up whats going on right now, there is actually the crowd is back there, several hundred protesters coming in. And im going to slide to the side a little bit, ayman, and get off camera. There is a line of Police Officers coming in right now. What we do know and there will probably be some rocks being thrown, so were taking a little defensive posture. The police are going in. Apparently there is someone who is having a medical emergency down there by the protesters. So theyre sending a line of police in. But you see people are throwing things at the police cars as theyre going in. There was a report of a man stabbed over there in that direction. We still dont fully know whats going on. But you see police going in, directly into the crowd. Theyre setting up some sort of perimeter, and im trying to look as we go. Were keeping our distance. Setting some sort of perimeter, but you see, this is going to be something. So its definitely something that were going to watch. They went directly into the crowd. As i said, there are reports of a man stabbed, someone being held, possibly a suspect. We dont know the full details. But thats what were see right now. Its a situation that has changed very quickly. When you actually came to me, it was seconds before when we realized something was going on. Up until then, there was music playing. There were people who were saying that they wanted to keep this peaceful, that they were going to stay calm, and that they wanted to control the narrative here. As were watching, there are now some flashbangs. People are running towards us in our direction. This is a tactic that weve become familiar with, usually around the precinct. And thats what they use the flashbangs, to kind of scatter the crowd, to clear out that from time to time. And thats whats going on. We know where theyre circling right now. Thats where there was some activity earlier. Keep an eye on whats going on, but thats what were looking at right now, ayman. Shaquille, i want you first and foremost to be safe where you are right now. But i know we also heard, i know youve been out there covering the protests. This is the third night youve been there since they kicked off following the death of george floyd. We can see some of those protesters there throwing what appear to be either some objects at the Police Vehicles making their way into the center. You can still see that happening off in the distance, see some police as well dispersing from that white van to try to keep some of the crowd at bay. One of the more Significant Developments tonight, shaquille, and im curious to get your thoughts on the ground was the decision by the governor to deploy the National Guard. A lot of people describing that as a provocation. From where you sit tonight, how do you see that playing out with the protesters there . I dont see it playing out well, ayman, and im just going to tell you what were going to do right now, our photographer john is just going to get off his tripod right now. So were going to have a shaky picture. All were doing is creating more distance between ourselves and the flashbangs so we can stay safe and report. What the protesters have been telling us, and they have been very clear about what they want. They want arrest from the officer. I know the National Guard, and that was something that we were talking about the National Guard coming in and more efforts to step up and step up the security around, thats definitely something thats needed because you see the Minneapolis Police department has been overwhelmed. A good example of that is we cant show it to you right now, but this is the same area where just last night the target was looted and a Grocery Store was being looted. That looting has been happening all day. Thats never stopped. And as we look on the, there are more Police Coming in now, ayman. Youll see the situation continue to develop and the perimeter set and expanded. As i was saying before, this is definitely a tense situation. And its a situation in both times, both nights weve been here, the situation escalates very quickly. At this time yesterday, so 24 hours from now, this was before this latest escalation happened, this is a much more aggressive scene. So what we were thinking was coming in to tonight, things were going to be a little bit more calm. Things were going to be a little bit quieter, at least before that press conference. But you see how quickly things can escalate. Especially when you have an emergency situation as you do right down there. Again, where you see those flashing lights, where those Police Cruisers are, that is in front of the third police, the third police precinct. So that is where the heart beat of the protests have been. That is where most of the clashes have been going in going on, and what you just saw was the police go in, a line of officers go in and set up a perimeter to handle some situation down there. The situation, again, were not clear exactly what it is. But they went right into the heart of it. Apparently the situation was urgent enough that they needed to do that. Aym ayman . Let me emphasize. Make sure you and your cameraman are safe. Take the precautions you need to keep the live shot on that crowd so we can see whaep whats happening. I want to bring in rashad robinson, the civil rights and president of color of change. Good to have you with us. Obviously a developing situation here. Some folks were hoping that tonight may be a little different, certainly following that News Conference. Its still early in the night. But as you heard there from my correspondent Shaquille Brewster on the ground, protests are still taking place. You can still see the images of some of those demonstraters throwing objects at the police as they make their way boo the crowd. This is certainly not the start of a peaceful situation. Yeah, i mean i think what youre seeing is a community that has had absolutely enough. If you or i were on video with our knee on someone and pushing life out of them, they there would be charges. There would be an arrest. There would be an investigation while after we were arrested, but we would not be able to be walking on the street right now and not living our life while folks were figuring out whether or not there were charges. District attorney offices around the country, including the one in Hennepin County, have a terrible record of Holding Police accountable. And what has happened as a result of that, its created a whole set of lack of trust between community and police forces. So, yes, we need arrests. Yes we need convictions. And i totally understand what attorney general ellison was saying, but there is an ongoing way where there is a different set of rules for police than everyone else. And as a result, communities have been treated liken my combatants, have not been heard, have not been recognized, and people are pushing people are pushing back. We need justice in this situation. We need police to be held accountable, and we also need longterm systemic change. Lets well get to the systemic change in a moment. I want to first get your reaction to the Big Development at the top of the hour, and that was the briefing from both the u. S. Attorneys office, the fbi, the county attorney there, as well as members of state Law Enforcement, the bca, i believe. What is your reaction to that briefing and the fact that as of yet, as of now 5 40 p. M. , no charges have been brought against any of the officers who are involved in the killing of george floyd. Unfortunately, this becomes this becomes a story that so much of us are used to. Being on the ground in ferguson. Being on the ground in baltimore. You start to see all of the ways in which the story starts to develop, how forces align to create doubt and sow doubt. Police are defended by their police union and by other forces that create sort of this idea that the police had a right or that the standard is too high to hold them accountable. And what ends up happening is we continue to give police the ability to kill with impunity without any consequences whatsoever. And so what i was very disappointed about was that they had a press conference without any press, without any news, without any new updates or new details on actually what was happening. You had the Hennepin County District Attorney talk about what happened in baltimore, but not talk about sort of the history of police being let off, the history of police not being held accountable, even in his jurisdiction. And then the one case where he did sort of reference, which was a black Police Officer that killed a white woman which somehow they magically were able to find a conviction for. But time and time again, when the victim is black and the Police Officers are not, we find all sorts of ways in which justice is not served. Over a Million People have now signed the color of change petition demanding action. Not just in terms of arrest and con convictions, but also the fight for longterm change. Because at the end of the day, this is not a new issue. And whether its in minneapolis or whether its in communities around the country. Even when we have video, even when we have sort of detailed evidence of police doing things that are out of bounds, we do not get the results. And in this situation, i have to recognize that the police chief moved much quicker than what weve seen all around the country. The police chief saw the video and felt like they needed to be fired. And now were wondering why did the police chief know that these folks need to be fired . Why did all of us see the Excessive Force on that video and at the very least, the Police Officers have not been held accountable in any way . The other Big Development today, as i was talking to our correspondent Shaquille Brewster there was the decision by the governor to deploy the National Guard. Give me your reaction to that decision as you watch this situation unfold. Is that likely to calm the situation since there seems to be so much anger directed towards the police . Or is this an escalation . Absolutely this is an escalation. I cant think of moments where the National Guard coming in has calmed peoples nerves down. People want a level of transparency that they havent had. People have a belief that the system will not work. And the reason why people have a belief that the system wont work without pressure, without pushing, without demands is because the system hasnt worked. Time and time again. And so, you know, having Trumps Justice Department come to minnesota and try to tell people to remain calm, were working, there is nothing to see here, you know, you would have to expect us to be crazy to simply be silent and believe that folks that time and time again have failed to hold police accountable. A Justice Department that is led by a president who has basically openly, as just a couple of years ago, joked with Police Officers about roughing up suspects, has a Justice Department which has, you know, moved become on consent decrees that hold Police Departments accountable. There are so many ways in which accountability is important. When weve seen Police Officers get fired in some of these cases, weve seen them actually get rehired in other places. The Police Officer that killed 12yearold tamir rice in ohio ends up get regular hired some place else. And the decks of the titanic keep getting shifted in terms of the chairs. So we are tired, and we need real action. And we also need people of all races and all backgrounds to recognize that they have a fight here too. That we need people to stand up i just want to give a quick update to our viewers who are watching this scene play out. We saw police about ten minutes ago, a convoy of police cars make their way into that crowd. And as they did, they were pelted by objects with some of those demonstrators that were there. They were able to at one point it seems put one person on what appeared to be a trolley and take them out. And just in the last few minutes there, we saw that police car as well as that van make its way out of the crowd, right to where our cameras were standing. Some of the Police Officers pointing what appear to be their weapons into the direction of the crowds. Not sure what they were firing, whether it was just rubber bullets or perhaps even tear gas canisters into that direction. But it seems now that the protesters and the demonstrators making their way away from that scene, a very volatile situation. There correspondent Shaquille Brewster is on the ground there. I want to bring in marq claxton for his perspective. Good to have you with us. A troubling scene were watching unfold. First of all, let me get your reactioned to what sear seeing play out this evening from federal and state Law Enforcement officials. Were witnessing on the street there is a real mix, a hodgepodge. We have individuals who are engaged in the protest. You have some amateur provocateurs mixed with the crowd. You have professional provocateurs mixed with the crowd. But i think over the death of mr. Floyd. Understanding. There seems to be in particular people of color from across the country. At this point, and the press conference that just ended is so disappointing and troubling, because just when youre thinking that there are individuals who are moving towards the right direction, you come up with the press conference about nothing. And if they cant find probable cause of the individual involved in the death of mr. Floyd, then across the nation in large department, small docum t departments who have clearly indicated that those and they should be arrested. There is no doubt that there is a justified anger on the street of minneapolis following everything that has transpired, not just in the last hour or so, but over the last 72 hours since that video emerged. How do you thread the needle so to speak between the police that is on the ground that is the subject of so much anger. We saw them being pelted by some of the protesters. Their anger directed towards the police, but also the need for the police in a situation like that to make sure, as you said, that various agents, provocateurs are not sabotaging a peaceful demonstration guaranteed by the constitution . You go into a situation such as this as a professional Law Enforcement person, and you understand that thats the dynamic. Thats the reality. And you also understand that you expose yourself to some increased danger. That thats the nature of the job. Thats what you signed up for. Thats what you understood would occur on occasion. What you also have to do is to understand and this goes back, and that speaks directly to empathy and humanity, you understand the frustrations of communities who feel they have been deceived. You understand the frustrations of communities who feel there has been unnecessary avoidable deaths at the hands of Law Enforcement officers in these black communities. So you go into it understanding all of these things, and you have to keep everything in perspective. People will protest. They have a right to protest that is the absolute american way. We cant act as if protest and call all protests rioting, which is a mistake, but we have to understand that protest and dr. King called it best. He called it rioting. Rioting is the language of the unheard. We have to realize and recognize that protest is about people who are trying to be heard and trying to get a response from government. As you probably heard, the u. S. Attorney was delayed when that News Conference got under way. This is how she explained why the News Conference was delayed. Take a listen. We thought we would have another development that i can tell you about. Unfortunately, we dont at this point. But i am here to talk to you about the federal investigation. What, i dont want you to speculate about why there was a delay, because we dont even know what the development is. But given the fact that there is this delay, does it only add anxiety and tension to an already volatile situation . Of course, it does. Let me just say this. It seems that this happened a few weeks ago with the aubrey case, there seems to be a strategy, a shift in stanl for those who want to drag their feet with these types of prosecution. Either you take on these cases, you start the investigation, it can be a flip in the investigation. You realize there is some conflict. You are ecues yourself, back it pass it onto the next person, you pass that on. Each step diminishes the integrity city of the situation or you prepare to be doing what is done before our eyes. You involve the federal government. They come in claiming to be riding in on a white horse, in fact, slowed down the process of investigations and possible local prosecutions. You see, there is clear enough is clearly probable cause. I will go back to what i said earlier, if you look and the ord, there are Law Enforcement professional, hands of agencies, heads of agencies, Police Professional whos recognize quite clearly there is probable cause to effect an arrest. That does not preclude or get in the way or interfere with an investigation. It is just a step in the investigation, itself. So the decisions that are being made and the decision had nothing to do with maintaining the integrity of an investigation, the sanctity of investigationles. People want to know what is holding this up. Stay with me i want to go back to our correspondent it seems like its calming down. Have we learned why we have the sudden outburst. Reporter the camera positions you see are better than we saw. Police go straight in and tell me what exactly happened. What did we see when Police Rushed . . What was going on . I originally came from that direction. There were a group of people detaining someone, they stabbed someone. They had they detained. They stopped and parked over there. I went back to get some belongings from my car. I told the officer, somebody is being entertained. How long . A citizen a citizen was detaining an individual that just stopped someone . With a gun . With a gun. There was a crowd around him. That individual did not have a gun. They had it lowered at them. They were trying to make sure that that person did not run away. So the group got involved as he was doing that so when the officer, i told the officers to move that along and they came there and that within they took control of the scenario. Obviously, that escalated things, the crowd is predominantly on that side of the street. The group left the police and are marching down the street. Where were they heading the last time you saw . Theyre heading this direction towards riverside, which is predominantly somebody in the east African Community. They were chasing after the Police Officers that were treated. You know the Police Officer were there pulling someone out . So the Police Officers, there were two different individuals. One was a person detained and they intervine 15ed him. The other individual was a young laid injured in the process. I dont know if someone said something was wrong with her neck. She was laying on the floor. Everybody was crowded under her. There is a lot of good people in this scenario. A lot were getting people to push back like myself, trying to make sure they put a crowd around her to protect her. The police tried to get the crowd away. They retreated initially. After they saw there were other individuals trying to cooperate with them, they came back and removed that individual and took her away. What is your reflexion of whats going on, not only the death of george floyd, the outrage and respovenlts you described it as its being surreal. Its beyond surreal. We have to be putting things in context. Clearly the Police System in america is broken. Unfortunately, this is the manifestation of long trauma and frustrations. These individuals arent pillageing and getting angry for no reason. The underlying symptoms is the Police Department in america and we need to completely abolish the system. Its not in the image of the community, to be honest. I started this without getting your name. Can i get your name please . My name is a. J. Im a candidate forward 6. Thank you for your time. Appreciate it. Thats what you see. You see how quickly the situation escalates. There are more protesters who are gathered down there in front of the precinct. That itself what you had, i told you minute before the situation escalated, there was music playing. There was more joyous atmosphere. You saw how quickly it changed. Thats what we have been seeing. Shaquille you and your team stay safe, my friend. I want to bring in Christina Greer a Political Science professor. A troubling situation continuing to unfold there. Let me first start by getting your thoughts on this very thought pro voting gentleman we heard from there who summarized the faeling of a lot of protesters there. The Police System is broken, it is an under plooi lying problem. Do you agree with that . I absolutely think we do. If we read the 1619 project and literature from historians and political scientists and we watch the news today, we know that the institutions that have been set up have antiblack racism. I think its playing out unfortunately on peoples cell phones. Its not new. I think will smith said its just being recorded. We saw this obviously in a lot of our lifetime, in my generation with rodney king and sadly we have a whole generation of young people growing up and witnessing these really vial acts being committed by the state. There the a lost data out there that shows a troubling pattern. Surveys show 75 of whites think police use the right amount of force compared to just 33 of blacks in this country. I think a lot of people look at that and say thats because policing is a different reality for whites and blacks in this country. Absolutely. We can go on youtube and google whites and the police. We saw last week when police were trying to enforce social distancing, they were pushed, one Police Officer was pushed into and po. We seen white people be able to yes, maam at police in their faces without masks on, physically harm the police without so much of a scratch on them. We are seeing the exact opposite happen when people possibly forged a check or possibly ran through a stop sign or actually just sitting in their own homes minding their own business so we have completely different systems set up based purely on race. We have seen class does not protect black people either in this country. The press conference concluded without any Significant Development and perhaps may even add more fuel to the fire. Are you at all surprised given what emerged and Law Enforcement are saying there was excessive use of force demonstrated in that video against george floyd that charges have not been brought forward yet is troubling in and of itself . Absolutely so first things first. My heart goes out to George Floyds family and the people of minnesota. We saw this in new york with eric garner. His family had to wait years before anything was done with officer pantaleo was involved. I dont think placing someone on leave ore terminateing is enough. In order for this to change, we have to see Police Officers actually take responsibility for their actions and serve time for murdering folks on camera in broad daylight. It should not be a death sentence if you have a minor infraction and you happen to have an interaction with the police. Especially if you are black and latin x in this country. Its to the point where i think so many people are exhausted. Their scared theyre frustrated and seeing the explicit nature, many Police Officer, not all, many Police Officers see black and brown skin and think of criminality. I think a lot of people are wondering how much more they can take . It seems like Christina Greer, mark claxton, thank you for joining us. That does it for me on the beat ill be here tomorrow morning at 10 00 a. M. Keep it right here on msnbc. Good evening. Im joy reed and this is america tonight. Across the country, protests continue amid a growing National Outcry over the death of george floyd. From new york to city chi to minneapolis, which remains on edge for a third day. And is bracing for another night