Donald Williams gave his testimony at the beginning of the George Floyd murder trial as the world watched on, and he is in an incredibly unique position to act as both a witness to the events and an expert on chokes. Williams is a professional MMA fighter, training and competing out of the local Minnesota Martial Arts Academy which is perhaps best known for former UFC Lightweight World Champion Sean Sherk. Not just this, but Williams has also competed as a wrestler for several years and has more grappling experience than almost certainly everyone in that courtroom.
Williams started his career as an amateur back in 2010 quickly amassed a 6-0 record inside of six months before he decided to make the jump to the professional leagues. He then alternated wins and losses evenly over twelve fights from then until as recently as 2019, including an appearance on Legacy FC and although Williams never broke into the highest level of professional fighters, he’s certainly got enough experience to testify on the use of chokes. Add to that the fact that Williams was actually an eye-witness to the events in question and he makes for the best person to give their opinion and a retelling of the circumstances in the George Floyd murder trial.
The George Floyd case went viral almost immediately due to the horrific nature of the video footage that emerged and soon sparked months of protests and public discourse. The conversation surrounding police use-of-force and how to prevent instances like this from happening again hasn’t stopped either, and key figures in the BJJ world have weighed in since then. Rener Gracie even went so far as to unveil a plan for national police reform that would entail sweeping changes across the entirety of the United States.
For those interested in reviewing the day’s events and the drawing their own conclusions from the Donald Williams’ testimony, click here to view the recap the entire day.
