Candlelight Vigil Held At George Floyd Memorial Hours After First Pretrial Hearing

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- On the night of the first pretrial hearing in the death of George Floyd, dozens gathered at the memorial site at East 38th Street and Chicago Avenue in south Minneapolis for a candlelight vigil.

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Tents kept the memorial site dry from the rain as people brought candles to the intersection that's since been deemed a "sacred space"

Cortez Rice, a close friend of Floyd who considers him family, was at Friday night's vigil. "I've known him as 'Uncle,' my kids know him as 'Uncle,'" he said.

Rice was also one of the hundreds of protesters outside the Hennepin County Family Justice Center on Friday.

"Watching some people that killed your love one walk right past you, it really brings a lot of anger, but also tells me, as a God-fearing man, that there's so much more work to be done out here," Rice said.

Before the vigil, the group met at another memorial nearby comprised of makeshift headstones with the names of 100 people who have lost their lives at the hands of police officers.

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