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Swift firings for Minneapolis officers in death of black man

Video showed the man pleading that he could not breathe as a white officer knelt on his neck for several minutes after the man stopped moving.

MINNEAPOLIS — Firings came swiftly for four Minneapolis police officers after bystander video captured the death of a black man in custody. 

The video showed the man pleading that he could not breathe as a white officer knelt on his neck and kept his knee there for several minutes after the man stopped moving. 

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said the firings were the “right call.” Monday's death of George Floyd is under investigation by the FBI and state law enforcement authorities in a process likely to take months. 

The case drew immediate comparisons to that of Eric Garner, an unarmed black man who died in 2014 in New York after being placed in a police chokehold.  

About 24 hours after Floyd's death, hundreds packed the streets of Minneapolis, many gathering at the intersection where Floyd was pinned to the ground by police officers shortly before he died.

Floyd was originally arrested Monday evening after officers responded to a call about an alleged forgery in progress. Video from bystanders shows Floyd handcuffed and pinned to the ground and one police officer's knee pressing against his neck. Floyd pleaded he was in pain and couldn't breathe. Shortly after, he died at a nearby hospital.

Four police officers involved in the incident were fired Tuesday, Minneapolis police said. State and federal authorities are now investigating the case.

Tuesday evening, protests started at the intersection where Floyd was last recorded alive. The protesters later moved to one of the police precincts, CNN affiliate WCCO reported.

"We're here to let them know this can't be tolerated, there will be severe consequences if they continue to kill us. This will not go on another day," a protester told the affiliate.

Police spray tear gas at protesters

After a crowd of protesters turned unruly, police sprayed tear gas to disperse the crowd, Minneapolis Police Department spokesperson John Elder told CNN.

CNN's team reported some demonstrators wheeled a shopping cart full of rocks just outside the precinct and dumped it on the ground for people to throw.

A police cruiser's back window was shattered when someone threw something at it, according to CNN's observations.

Police outside Minneapolis Police Department's 3rd Precinct fired what appeared to CNN's team on the scene to be non-lethal projectiles at demonstrators chanting "No justice, no peace," and "I can't breathe," which were some of the last words the man uttered.

Elder said "foam marking rounds," but no rubber bullets were fired during the incident.

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