Maryland officials order the reinvestigation of about 100 deaths in police custody
The review follows an audit of police-involved deaths under the tenure of former Chief Medical Officer David Fowler, who testified that George Floyd's death was caused by heart disease and drug use.
After George Floyd was killed by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin in 2020, Maryland's former Chief Medical Examiner Dr. David Fowler was called in as a defense witness for the 2021 trial.
On the stand, Fowler testified that, based on his study of the forensic evidence, Floyd's death should be classified as "undetermined" and not a homicide, due to a medley of factors including heart disease, drug use and carbon monoxide exposure.
Chauvin was later convicted of murder — which contradicted the Hennepin medical examiner's determination that Floyd's death was a homicidesparked immediate concern among hundreds of his peers around the country, who suggested he might be motivated by racial or pro-law enforcement bias.
