Top story: Wave of relief in Minneapolis at Chauvin verdict
Hello, Warren Murray with news of justice served.
Derek Chauvin has been convicted of murder for killing George Floyd by kneeling on his neck for more than nine minutes, a crime that prompted waves of protests in support of racial justice in the US and across the world. The jury swiftly and unanimously convicted Chauvin of all the charges he faced – second- and third-degree murder, and manslaughter – after concluding that the white former Minneapolis police officer killed the 46-year-old black man in May last year through a criminal assault, by pinning him to the ground so he could not breathe.
Chauvin faces up to 40 years in prison but is likely to receive a shorter sentence, according to legal guidelines. The trial saw 44 witnesses and 15 days of testimony, in which the prosecution presented Chauvin’s guilt as plainly evident from video of him pinning Floyd down and medical findings that he died from a lack of oxygen to the brain. Chauvin’s defence argued other causes might have been at play.
Addressing Americans last night, Joe Biden said the verdict was “a start”. But, he said, “in order to deliver real change and reform, we can and we must do more … Enough. Enough of the senseless killings.” The convictions sent a wave of relief across large parts of a city that was badly hit by riots and looting in the days after Floyd’s death, alongside peaceful protests. Hundreds of national guard troops had been deployed in preparation for an acquittal. Three other officers face trial later this year accused of aiding and abetting murder and manslaughter.
* * *
Blooper league – The European Super League is on the brink of collapse after all six English clubs dramatically signalled their intention to withdraw from the competition after being taken aback by the furious backlash from fans and the government. It took a mere 56 hours from the news of the ESL first breaking for the wheels to fall off. England’s big six may have backed down but the breakaway competition has vowed to “reshape” its plans and, writes Barney Ronay, the fight is not over yet.
* * *
Midweek catch-up
> The Labour party has called for the government to step in to save Liberty Steel and thousands of supply chain jobs. Sanjeev Gupta is scrambling to refinance his companies after the collapse of Greensill Capital. Labour says the government waiting until Liberty falls into insolvency would be too late as suppliers would be left unpaid.
> The junior defence minister Johnny Mercer has been dismissed before he could quit amid a row with Boris Johnson over a controversial pledge to prevent veterans who served in Northern Ireland from being prosecuted.
> TikTok illegally collects the information of its child users, says Anne Longfield, the ex-children’s commissioner for England. She is asking the high court to make the video-sharing app stop doing so, delete existing data and pay compensation.
> As many as 800,000 clinically extremely vulnerable people may have missed out on government support at the start of the pandemic, with some elderly and blind people struggling to access food, parliament’s spending watchdog has found.
> The observations, thoughts and sentiments of the public on the arrival of spring have been made into a poem by the nature writer Elizabeth-Jane Burnett. Burnett took the 400 voices and created a poem called Spring, An Inventory after a call for contributions by the National Trust and Arts and Humanities Research Council.
* * *
Pill to stop Covid – People with mild Covid-19 could in future take a pill or capsule at home to prevent it sending them to hospital. An antivirals taskforce is being formed to find at least two drugs by the autumn that can stop coronavirus and speed up recovery. Johnson said the plans were part of the UK adapting to a new reality: “The majority of scientific opinion in this country is still firmly of the view that there will be another wave of Covid at some stage this year.” Further coronavirus developments at our freshly minted live blog.
* * *
Queen’s quiet 95th – The Queen is marking her 95th birthday today while still in official royal mourning for her husband of 73 years, the Duke of Edinburgh. For a second consecutive year the traditional 41-gun and 21-gun salutes in Hyde Park and at the Tower of London have been cancelled. The Queen is said to be spending the day quietly at Windsor Castle, possibly joined by close family members.
Prince Charles is reported be at his official Welsh home Llwynywermod, in Myddfai, Llandovery, having travelled there from Windsor where he and senior royals were among 30 mourners to attend Philip’s funeral. The Queen also has an official birthday, which this year falls on 12 June. The royals will continue to observe royal mourning until Friday – two weeks after Philip’s death.
Today in Focus podcast: Slowly dying in our seats?
Modern lifestyles are increasingly sedentary and inactive, and the public health effects of this are only just starting to show up, says author and Guardian reporter Peter Walker.
Lunchtime read: Washing our hands and not much else
“I only shower if I need to leave the building. I washed my bits … My skin feels so much healthier.” Lockdown affected all our routines when it comes to showering, bathing, shampooing and deodorant. Will regular washing ever resume?
Sport
Thomas Tuchel has insisted that owners hoping to create a European Super League care about competition, after the Chelsea coach cut a frustrated figure as his team were held to a goalless draw by Brighton at Stamford Bridge. Ed Woodward has resigned as Manchester United’s executive vice-chairman and will leave the club at the end of the year. Ed Smith has been stood down as England’s national cricket selector after three years in the role, following a restructure.
Women’s sport could generate more than £1bn a year by 2030, and increasing the visibility of female athletes and teams is key to unlocking the huge sum. Eddie Jones has escaped the sack as England’s head coach but is set to be placed under greater scrutiny by a team of hand-picked, expert consultants. Mark Allen beat Lyu Haotian 10-2 in the world championship first round, and then paid tribute to the outgoing World Snooker Tour chairman, Barry Hearn. George Russell has issued a full apology to Valtteri Bottas after confronting him in the wake of their crash at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix on Sunday.
Business
The food delivery company Just Eat is continuing to make good on its pledge to tackle the gig economy by offering 1,500 takeaway couriers in Liverpool minimum pay, sick pay and holiday pay by the end of the year. Concerns about the resurgence in Covid-19 cases around the world have given investors the jitters, with Asian stock markets led by Japan seeing chunky falls overnight. The FTSE100 is set to open flat this morning, with the pound fetching $1.392 and €1.158.
The papers
A good deal of hard work went into producing today’s Guardian across all editions – leading initially on English clubs abandoning the European Super League as football greed comes home to roost, then later switching to Derek Chauvin being found guilty of murdering George Floyd. The i calls the ESL debacle an “Own goal”, the Sun has “Cheerio! Cheerio! Cheerio”, and the Mirror says “New hope for football … Eur not singing any more”.
A famous football quote is recycled by the Metro: “They think it’s all over”. It also has special coverage of the Queen’s birthday, saluting her “95 glorious years”. It points to the Chauvin verdict inside with “Guilty, guilty, guilty”. Of that, the Mail says “Guilty – now can George Floyd verdict bring peace to America’s race turmoil?”
The Times’ first and second leads are as you might expect: “Super League crumbles as clubs bow to fan fury” and “Police officer found guilty of murdering George Floyd”. The latter is the picture lead in the Telegraph while its splash is “Only 32 hospitalised with Covid after jab”, saying scientists are delighted with the data but Boris Johnson insists he will not deviate from the roadmap out of lockdown. The FT leads with “Xi calls for new world order in attack on global US leadership” while the ESL story is relegated (see that?) to the basement slot.
Sign up
The Guardian Morning Briefing is delivered to thousands of inboxes bright and early every weekday. If you are not already receiving it by email, you can sign up here.
For more news: www.theguardian.com
