The murder case against former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin in the death of George Floyd has gone to the jury.

Twelve jurors are beginning deliberations in a city on edge against another round of unrest.

During closing arguments, prosecutors argued that Chauvin squeezed the life out of Floyd by pinning his knee against Floyd's neck last May, ignoring bystanders and common sense.

The defense argued that the now-fired white officer acted reasonably and that the 46-year-old Black man died of an underlying heart condition and illegal drug use.

Chauvin removed his COVID-19 mask in front of the jury for one of the very few times during the trial as his lawyer, Eric Nelson, reminded jurors that Chauvin is presumed innocent and saying the state didn't prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt.

Nelson noted that the Minneapolis police department taught officers defensive tactic techniques that included restraining someone on the ground as a way to control them, citing the testimony of a police trainer.

Nelson argued that a reasonable police officer should take into account the 17 minutes before Floyd was brought to the ground, during which he struggled with officers. He said three officers were unable to get Floyd in the squad car even though he was handcuffed, showing surveillance video of the car rocking back and forth. He played body camera video of the struggle, pointing out that Floyd kicked at another officer, Thomas Lane, and nearly knocked him over.

"All of that comes into play. Why? Because human behavior is unpredictable, and nobody knows it better than a police officer," Nelson said. "Someone can be compliant one second and fighting the next. Someone can be fighting one second and compliant the next.

After Nelson's closing argument the prosecution will have a chance to deliver a rebuttal argument before jury deliberations begin.

Prosecutor Steve Schleicher spent 1 hour and 43 minutes during his remarks earlier Monday, arguing why Chauvin should be convicted.

Schleicher told jurors Derek Chauvin “had to know” he was squeezing the life out of George Floyd as the Black man cried out over and over that he couldn’t breathe. 

The prosecution went first, hoping to convince the jury that Chauvin squeezed the life from George Floyd as he and two other officers pinned him to the street for 9 minutes, 29 seconds, outside a corner market.

Prosecutors say those actions, despite Floyd’s repeated cries that he couldn’t breathe, were reckless, unreasonable and warrant conviction not just for manslaughter but also on two murder counts.

Chauvin is charged with second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. He has pleaded not guilty. 

The other three officers involved are charged with aiding and abetting, and are expected to be tried jointly in August.

 

(The Associated Press, CBS News contributed to this report.)