Medical examiner concludes George Floyd didn't die of asphyxia

In the charges brought against former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin on Friday, a new finding shows the county medical examiner concluded the death of George Floyd was not a result of asphyxia or strangulation.

An autopsy of Floyd was conducted Tuesday following his death on Monday after Chauvin restrained him for nearly nine minutes by pressing his knee on Floyd's neck.

The full report by the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's office is pending but so far has found "no physical findings that support a diagnosis of traumatic asphyxia or strangulation."

Floyd's underlying health conditions included coronary artery disease and hypertensive heart disease. The report says the underlying health conditions, combined with Chauvin's restraint and any possible intoxicants in Floyd's system, likely contributed to his death.

Floyd's death became a point of national interest and outrage, resulting in violent protests in Minneapolis and across the country. Some protesters destroyed several buildings within the Twin Cities on top of looting big box stores and burning local businesses. On Thursday, protesters set aflame the Third Precinct police station in Minneapolis where Chauvin and three other officers involved with the detainment of Floyd worked.

Floyd's detainment revolved around an account of forgery when a local business owner thought he had handed him a counterfeit bill to pay for his purchase.

The violence has been condemned by local and state leaders including Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey. Trump has also spoken out against the looting threatening to send in the National Guard to control the situation with a controversial tweet later labeled with a warning from Twitter for "glorifying violence."

Trump, along with his likely Democratic presidential challenger Joe Biden, have both said they have spoken to with the family of Floyd.

The family has spoken out against the charge brought against Chauvin, saying it does not go far enough and they would like to see him charged with first-degree murder with additional charges given to the other three officers.

Chauvin was charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter on Friday. The three other officers involved were fired, but not yet charged with crimes.