(NEW YORK) — Here are today’s In Crisis headlines:
Derek Chauvin murder trial jury deliberations begin
The jury in the Derek Chauvin murder trial began deliberations Monday, after the prosecution and defense spent the morning and early afternoon presenting their closing arguments. Prosecutors again argued that George Floyd died because Chauvin knelt on his neck for more than nine minutes, constricting his breathing while ignoring Floyd’s repeated cries for him to stop, and urged the jury to “Use your common sense. Believe your eyes.” The defense again countered that it was heart disease and drug use that killed Floyd, and not Chauvin’s actions, a contention the prosecution, during their rebuttal, sarcastically called an “amazing coincidence.” The sequestered jury of six white people and six people who are Black or multiracial received their instructions and began deliberations at about 4:00 p.m. local time and adjourned at 8:00 p.m. Jury deliberations resumed Tuesday at 8:00 a.m. local time.
Minneapolis and cities across the country are preparing for possible protests when a verdict is announced. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz asked for help from Ohio and Nebraska ahead of the verdict, while the White House has begun taking steps to prepare for the outcome in the trial, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday, noting the administration was in touch with local officials.
Fallen Capitol Police officer died of natural causes, says medical examiner
U.S. Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick died of “natural” causes – specifically, a stroke — one day after a violent mob stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6, the Washington, D.C., medical examiner announced Monday. The conclusion comes amid lingering questions over whether the 42-year-old officer was fatally attacked during the Capitol attack. Last month, federal authorities arrested two men who allegedly assaulted Sicknick with bear spray at the Capitol, but authorities didn’t say then if the assault directly contributed to his death the next day. According to the medical examiner, a stroke is what caused Sicknick’s “natural” death, and “If death is hastened by an injury, the manner of death is not considered natural.” In a statement, the U.S. Capitol Police said that while they accept the medical examiner’s conclusion, “This does not change the fact Officer Sicknick died in the line of duty, courageously defending Congress and the Capitol.”
COVID-19 numbers
Here’s the latest data on COVID-19 coronavirus infections, deaths and vaccinations.
Latest reported COVID-19 numbers globally per Johns Hopkins University
Global diagnosed cases: 142,194,528
Global deaths: 3,032,835. The United States has the most deaths of any single country, with 567,729.
Number of countries/regions: at least 192
Total patients recovered globally: 81,427,877
Latest reported COVID-19 numbers in the United States per Johns Hopkins University
There are at least 31,738,944 reported cases in 50 states + the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam. This is more than in any other country.
U.S. deaths: at least 567,729. California has the greatest number of reported deaths in the U.S., with 61,045.
U.S. total people tested: 418,806,572
The greatest number of reported COVID-19 cases in the U.S. is in California, with 3,720,901 confirmed cases out of a total state population of 39.51 million. This ranks third in the world after England, which has 3,836,833 cases, and Maharashtra, India, which leads the world with 3,898,262 reported cases. Texas is second in the U.S., with 2,855,290 confirmed cases out of a total state population of 29 million.
Latest reported COVID-19 vaccination numbers in the United States
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports a total of 264,505,725 COVID-19 vaccine doses have been distributed in the U.S. Of those, 211,581,309 doses have been administered, with 132,321,628 people receiving at least one dose and 85,365,180 people fully vaccinated, representing 39.9% and 25.7% of the total U.S. population, respectively. The Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines each require two doses to be effective. The Johnson & Johnson vaccine requires a single dose to be effective.
COVID-19 cases rising worldwide, says WHO
COVID-19 cases worldwide last week increased for the eighth consecutive week, the World Health Organization reported Monday in its weekly press conference, with more than 5.2 million new cases reported globally. That’s the largest single-week increase since the start of the pandemic. Additionally, deaths increased for the fifth week in a row last week, which also saw the reported global death toll top three million people. WHO Director General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said while it took nine months to reach one million deaths worldwide, it took four months to reach two million deaths, and only three months to reach a reported three million deaths worldwide.
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