What were the key autopsy findings in the George Floyd case?

1. The official cause and manner: cardiopulmonary arrest labeled homicide

The Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s formal cause of death was recorded as cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint and neck compression, and the manner was ruled homicide — language that ties Floyd’s death directly to the restraint used by officers while stopping short of assigning legal culpability ^{[1] [3]}.

2. The independent autopsy: mechanical asphyxia and neck/back compression

Independent pathologists hired by the Floyd family concluded the cause of death was mechanical asphyxia brought on by sustained, forceful pressure on the neck and back, and likewise classified the manner of death as homicide — a conclusion that emphasized airway and blood-flow compromise from external pressure ^{[2] [4]}.

3. Toxicology and “other significant conditions” noted by the county report

The county autopsy reported fentanyl and methamphetamine in Floyd’s system, and listed "other significant conditions" including arteriosclerotic and hypertensive heart disease; prosecutors and some medical experts cautioned these findings were contributors in the broader medical context but were not presented by the examiner as the sole cause of death ^{[1] [5] [6]}.

4. Specific physiological findings: heavy, edematous lungs; sickle‑cell trait; COVID PCR positive

Autopsy documentation noted Floyd’s lungs were markedly heavy — described as two to three times normal weight consistent with pulmonary edema — and mentioned histologic findings prompting hemoglobin S testing consistent with sickle‑cell trait artifact in tissue ^{[7] [8]}. A postmortem nasal swab was PCR‑positive for SARS‑CoV‑2, though the medical examiner noted the result likely reflected an earlier infection rather than active, fatal COVID‑19 disease ^{[9] [10]}.

5. External and traumatic findings: bruises, fractures, and lack of “life‑threatening” neck injuries

The county report documented blunt‑force injuries to face, shoulders, hands, arms and legs, a broken rib, and bruising from handcuffs, while also stating it did not identify life‑threatening injuries to Floyd’s neck, head, spine, chest, brain or skull — language that different parties later debated and that contributed to public confusion ^{[5] [1]}.

6. Why two reports appeared to differ — methodological and rhetorical differences

Forensic experts and reporting later explained the two autopsies are not as contradictory as early headlines suggested: the county framed a multi‑factor medical narrative (cardiac disease, intoxicants, restraint) while the family’s exam emphasized mechanical asphyxia from compression, and both labeled the death a homicide; much of the reported disagreement arose from selective quoting and expectations of a single cause of death in complex cases ^{[11] [12]}.

7. Quantitative toxicology detail and its interpretation in court and media

The county toxicology showed fentanyl at levels reported around 11 nanograms per milliliter in blood samples; several medical witnesses and fact‑checks later said that level, while significant, was not uniformly considered fatal on its own and therefore did not by itself explain the death without the restraint context ^{[7] [5] [6]}.

8. The broader dispute and how findings were used politically and legally

From the outset, different actors — prosecutors, defense teams, family lawyers and media outlets — emphasized aspects of the autopsies that supported their narratives: officials cited contributing heart disease and intoxicants, the family focused on neck and back compression as the fatal mechanism, and journalists and scientists later flagged how selective excerpts and politicized language can distort technical medical reports ^{[1] [2] [12]}.