To be fair let's look at what both autopsies actually write:
CNN, which we know pulls things its own way, says:
here is the text of the actual county medical examiner's press release:
and I really wonder how many people actually read the documents and don't repeat CNN or whatever blindly:
1. "The independent autopsy says Floyd died of "asphyxiation from sustained pressure" when his neck and back were compressed..."
it's not an independent autopsy, it's hired by the family. It could even be right but the question is "would this pressure normally not cause asphyxiation?". It doesn't say anything about that, which is extremely important. It also says "no other obvious cause of death" - keyword "obvious".
2. "The county said that fentanyl and methamphetamine use were among "significant conditions," but its report didn't say how much of either drug was in Floyd's system or how that may have contributed..."
correct, it doesn't say how much he consumed, when, etc., but also it doesn't say it was irrelevant. On the contrary, it says they were important (see below):
3. But the medical examiner's office, in its report also released Monday, said that the cause of death is "cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint, and neck compression."
Says here he had a heart attack (the heart stopped) while being arrested. Of course then you always write "cardiopulmonary arrest" when you are not sure (at the end, the heart and lungs stop, so it's not wrong).
4. "The Hennepin County release says heart disease was an issue; the independent examiner didn't find that."
No, those are different things, CNN. Somebody can have heart disease (e.g. paroxysmal SVT, supraventricular tachycardia, the heart beats too fast) and be otherwise healthy. Someone can have other diseases, a very healthy heart, and die because the disease caused the heart to stop.
Also the family-hired examiner didn't exclude the patient had a heart attack.
5. "Whether or not he was intoxicated or had medications in his system is irrelevant to the cause of death, which is homicide, which is death by the hand of another," Floyd family attorney Antonio Romanucci told CNN. "The end result, which is George Floyd's death, would not be any different."
The lawyer is being tricky (surprise). A homicide is one person killing another. A homicide is not always a crime (e.g. justified shooting). Murder is always a crime.
In fact, the county medical examiner says:
"Floyd "experienced a cardiopulmonary arrest while being restrained by law enforcement officer(s)," though made note that the manner of death being homicide is "not a legal determination of culpability or intent." "
Pity fair and just CNN didn't explain things to the readers. I am sure they will be repeating things without thinking.
TL;DR is this: "The family-hired examiner found evidence of asphyxiation as in any case could be seen on the video. The county found evidence of drug use and suggests it contributed to the death. While both agree that the officer played a role in the patient's death, it is unsure yet whether this role was criminal"
That's it. But then people wouldn't panic and watch CNN etc.
by the way, lookie lookie what the criminal complaint says:
"The autopsy revealed no physical findings that support a diagnosis of traumatic asphyxia or strangulation. Mr. Floyd had underlying health conditions including coronary artery disease and hypertensive heart disease. The combined effects of Mr. Floyd being restrained by the police, his underlying health conditions and any potential intoxicants in his system likely contributed to his death."
criminal complaint:
I wonder how many rioters actually read this. Oh but the county is biased - well then, so is the family expert.
