Video of George Floyd’s arrest from the body cameras of two officers charged in his death will be available for public viewing by appointment on Wednesday.
However, a judge declined to allow the video to be published by news organizations – a move that could help paint the whole picture leading to Floyd’s death.
Thomas Lane’s attorney, Earl Gray, submitted the footage from the body cameras of Lane and J. Kueng last week, but only the written transcripts were made public.
The body camera videos were filed in court as part of a motion to have Lane’s case dismissed.
Gray said he wanted the videos to be made public to show the “whole picture,” pointing out that the bystander video shows just the last piece of what happened and “is not fair.”
A coalition of media organizations have been asking Judge Peter Cahill to allow public access to body camera video, while attorneys for Lane and Kueng have asked that a gag order in the case be lifted.
The media coalition calls this arrangement, the equivalent of keeping the videos under seal.
Media attorney Leita Walker said that the footage should be made widely available to “all members of the public concerned about the administration of justice in one of the most important, and most-watched, cases this State — perhaps this country — has ever seen.”
She argued that should journalists be allowed to copy the footage, watch it multiple times, transcribe it and compare it to the transcripts and to time stamps from the widely seen bystander video, reporters could help piece together a more complete story.
“As the days of unrest in the Twin Cities showed, it is vitally important that the public have full confidence in the process and outcome of this criminal prosecution,” she added.