Quote (WickedDarkJuggalos @ Nov 13 2021 07:44pm)
I was mistaken maybe, but the fact still remains there was obvious political pressure for the autopsy results to be fabricated in one way or another. .
I think it went beyond just political pressure
I had to do some google fu since I didn't remember it off hand, but it was Dr. Roger Mitchell who threatened Dr. Andrew Baker;
https://www.startribune.com/attorneys-for-former-officer-charged-in-george-floyd-s-death-call-me-s-testimony-into-question/600056585/https://www.mncourts.gov/mncourtsgov/media/High-Profile-Cases/27-CR-20-12949-TT/Order07292021.pdfhttps://www.mncourts.gov/mncourtsgov/media/High-Profile-Cases/27-CR-20-12953-JAK/MCRO_27-CR-20-12953_Other-Document_2021-05-20_20210520145111.pdfQuote
According to the motion: A May 26 memo by Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Patrick Lofton noted that Baker's preliminary autopsy "revealed no physical evidence suggesting Mr. Floyd died of asphyxiation," and that his inquiry was not complete.
Sometime after that, Mitchell contacted Baker, who told Mitchell he didn't think neck compression was a factor in Floyd's death. Mitchell said he would release an op-ed in the Washington Post criticizing Baker's findings, the motion said.
"In this conversation, Mitchell said, you don't want to be the medical examiner who tells everyone they didn't see what they saw. You don't want to be the smartest person in the room and be wrong," the motion said. "… Mitchell said neck compression has to be in the diagnosis."
On June 1, Baker issued his final autopsy findings, which said Floyd died of "cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint and neck compression." He also ruled the cause of death a homicide, an act caused by another person.
Mitchell's accusations created a "chilling effect" for Thao and violate his rights to due process, the motion said, adding that it has become "extraordinarily difficult" to find medical experts willing to say Floyd's cause of death is undetermined.
When the guy who was one of the foremost forensic expert medical examiners in the country testified for Chauvin's defense, they did exactly what they threatened and tried to destroy his professional career, looking to strip him of his positions and launch an inquisition into any other trials he's testified at / every case he was the medical examiner for. Also, it doesn't say it in the strib article, but Andrew Baker was up for a license renewal hearing in front of the city officials just a few weeks after he published his Floyd autopsy, and he only scraped by with like a 1 vote margin, with the officials voting against him saying his autopsy didn't blame Chauvin
enoughSo its guaranteed that if Baker had actually given a real report that stuck to the facts of the case, he'd have lost his job at a minimum, more likely be the subject of an inquiry, and guaranteed the target of harassment / threats.
This post was edited by Goomshill on Nov 13 2021 08:07pm