Topline
The Cup Foods cashier who took the counterfeit $20 from George Floyd that prompted his May 25 arrest said while testifying at the trial of former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin on Wednesday that he feels “guilt” about flagging the fake money and that Floyd’s death “could’ve been avoided.”
Christopher Martin, 19, testifying in court on Wednesday, the third day of the trial of ... [+]
Key Facts
Christopher Martin, 19, testified on the third day of the trial that he had been working at Cup Foods for roughly four months when Floyd handed him the counterfeit $20 bill, which he guessed was fake because of its blue hue.
The clerk, who said he had engaged in a brief conversation with Floyd who he described as sounding “a little high,” said he “originally planned to take it and put it on [his] tab,” noting that Cup Foods has a policy that employees must deduct the money from their paycheck if they take counterfeit bills.
“Then I second guessed myself,” Martin testified, explaining that he instead decided to alert his manager, who sent him outside to speak with Floyd.
Martin tried to get Floyd, who was sitting outside the store in his car along with two friends, to return to the store on two separate occasions, but Floyd didn’t oblige: “He seemed like he didn’t want this to happen.”
After the first time, Martin said he offered his manager to pay for the cigarettes Floyd was attempting to purchase, but was sent outside again before his manager instructed another employee to call the police.
As the officers arrested Floyd, Martin was seen in security footage shown to the jury standing and watching with his hands on his head—he told the prosecution he feels “guilt” about the incident.
Crucial Quote
“If I had not taken the bill, this could’ve been avoided,” Martin said, adding that he left his job at Cup Foods after Floyd’s death because he “no longer felt safe.”
Key Background
Once the officers arrived on the scene, they detained Floyd and Chauvin, a 19-year veteran of the force, used a neck chokehold on the 46-year-old Black man. His death later that day sparked months of international anti-racism protests and a push for policing reform within the U.S. Officer Chauvin faces charges of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
What To Watch For
The trial is expected to stretch through most of April. The other three officers at the scene—Tou Thao, Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng—will stand trial separately later this year on charges of aiding and abetting second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
