(Trends Wide) –– The three former police officers who helped Derek Chauvin contain George Floyd on a Minneapolis street in May 2020 will be tried in federal court starting Monday for violating Floyd’s civil rights.
J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao face charges of violation of rights under the guise of the law for allegedly failing to provide medical assistance to Floyd on May 25, 2020, according to the indictment. Thao and Kueng are also accused of failing to intervene in Chauvin’s use of unreasonable force, when he knelt on Floyd’s neck and back for more than 9 minutes.
Kueng, Lane and Thao have pleaded not guilty to federal charges, while Chauvin pleaded guilty in December as part of a plea deal. Additionally, Chauvin was convicted in Minnesota last year on state charges of accidental homicide, manslaughter with disregard for life and manslaughter in the commission of felony.
A jury of five men and seven women was selected for the officers’ case last Thursday in federal court in St. Paul, Minnesota. Opening statements in the trial are scheduled for Monday at 10 am local time.
The trial begins some 20 months after Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, was handcuffed and pressed face down to the pavement during an arrest. Heartbreaking video recorded by a bystander shows Floyd gasping for air as he pleaded with officers, “I can’t breathe” and called for his mother.
Agents called for medical services but did not provide help to Floyd, who became unconscious and stopped breathing. He was in the same position until paramedics arrived and lifted his limp body into an ambulance. He was pronounced dead later that night.
The video of his final moments sparked widespread protests and riots in a social movement against police brutality and racial injustice. Less than two years later, reliving the murder remains especially difficult for Floyd’s family.
“This trial will be another painful experience for the Floyd family, who must once again relive his grueling death in excruciating detail,” Ben Crump, Antonio Romanucci and Jeff Storms, attorneys for the Floyd family, said in a statement. “On behalf of the legal team and family, we trust and hope that an impartial jury representing the community will be selected to do this important job.”
The federal case is different from the state charges in Floyd’s death. Kueng, Lane and Thao have pleaded not guilty to state charges of abetting and abetting, and that trial is tentatively scheduled for June.
What will this trial against the 3 former police officers for the death of George Floyd focus on?
The evidence at the federal trial will likely be very similar to the murder trial Chauvin faced in Minnesota state court last year. Federal prosecutors have indicated in court documents that they plan to seek testimony from witnesses who saw officers restrain Floyd, from experts on the use of police force and from medical experts.
Unlike that case, however, the proceedings will not be televised because the federal court does not allow cameras.
The actions of the three former police officers during Floyd’s arrest in May 2020 were shown in detail during Chauvin’s state trial, through bystander video, police body cameras and surveillance footage.
Chauvin, the most senior of the four officers, placed Floyd face down on the street and knelt on his neck and back. Kueng held onto Floyd’s torso and Lane held onto his legs, while Thao stood nearby and blocked worried bystanders from getting close or intervening.
Cops held Floyd in that position, handcuffed and face down on the ground, for 9 minutes and 29 seconds, prosecutors said during Chauvin’s trial. Troopers at no time moved Floyd into a lateral recovery position to help him with his breathing.
During restraint, Lane is heard asking, “Should we put him on his side?” To which Chauvin replies, “No, we’ll leave it where we have it,” according to body camera videos. Minutes later, Lane said again, “Do you want to turn it on its side?” the videos show. Kueng checked Floyd’s pulse but could not detect it.
The four policemen were fired after the publication of the video of a witness. Days later, they were arrested and charged.
Thao served as a police officer for more than eight years, while Lane and Kueng were rookie officers with only a few days of experience, according to a criminal complaint.
Chauvin pleaded guilty last December to federal charges for violating Floyd’s civil rights during the arrest. He also pleaded guilty in a separate federal case, in which he is accused of violating the rights of a 14-year-old boy in 2017 for kneeling on the back and neck of a handcuffed teenager who did not resist.
As part of that plea deal, Chauvin faces a sentence of between 20 and 25 years in prison to be served concurrently with his current sentence of 22.5 years on the state murder charges.
Trends Wide’s Jason Kravarik contributed to this report.
(Trends Wide) –– The three former police officers who helped Derek Chauvin contain George Floyd on a Minneapolis street in May 2020 will be tried in federal court starting Monday for violating Floyd’s civil rights.
J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao face charges of violation of rights under the guise of the law for allegedly failing to provide medical assistance to Floyd on May 25, 2020, according to the indictment. Thao and Kueng are also accused of failing to intervene in Chauvin’s use of unreasonable force, when he knelt on Floyd’s neck and back for more than 9 minutes.
Kueng, Lane and Thao have pleaded not guilty to federal charges, while Chauvin pleaded guilty in December as part of a plea deal. Additionally, Chauvin was convicted in Minnesota last year on state charges of accidental homicide, manslaughter with disregard for life and manslaughter in the commission of felony.
A jury of five men and seven women was selected for the officers’ case last Thursday in federal court in St. Paul, Minnesota. Opening statements in the trial are scheduled for Monday at 10 am local time.
The trial begins some 20 months after Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, was handcuffed and pressed face down to the pavement during an arrest. Heartbreaking video recorded by a bystander shows Floyd gasping for air as he pleaded with officers, “I can’t breathe” and called for his mother.
Agents called for medical services but did not provide help to Floyd, who became unconscious and stopped breathing. He was in the same position until paramedics arrived and lifted his limp body into an ambulance. He was pronounced dead later that night.
The video of his final moments sparked widespread protests and riots in a social movement against police brutality and racial injustice. Less than two years later, reliving the murder remains especially difficult for Floyd’s family.
“This trial will be another painful experience for the Floyd family, who must once again relive his grueling death in excruciating detail,” Ben Crump, Antonio Romanucci and Jeff Storms, attorneys for the Floyd family, said in a statement. “On behalf of the legal team and family, we trust and hope that an impartial jury representing the community will be selected to do this important job.”
The federal case is different from the state charges in Floyd’s death. Kueng, Lane and Thao have pleaded not guilty to state charges of abetting and abetting, and that trial is tentatively scheduled for June.
What will this trial against the 3 former police officers for the death of George Floyd focus on?
The evidence at the federal trial will likely be very similar to the murder trial Chauvin faced in Minnesota state court last year. Federal prosecutors have indicated in court documents that they plan to seek testimony from witnesses who saw officers restrain Floyd, from experts on the use of police force and from medical experts.
Unlike that case, however, the proceedings will not be televised because the federal court does not allow cameras.
The actions of the three former police officers during Floyd’s arrest in May 2020 were shown in detail during Chauvin’s state trial, through bystander video, police body cameras and surveillance footage.
Chauvin, the most senior of the four officers, placed Floyd face down on the street and knelt on his neck and back. Kueng held onto Floyd’s torso and Lane held onto his legs, while Thao stood nearby and blocked worried bystanders from getting close or intervening.
Cops held Floyd in that position, handcuffed and face down on the ground, for 9 minutes and 29 seconds, prosecutors said during Chauvin’s trial. Troopers at no time moved Floyd into a lateral recovery position to help him with his breathing.
During restraint, Lane is heard asking, “Should we put him on his side?” To which Chauvin replies, “No, we’ll leave it where we have it,” according to body camera videos. Minutes later, Lane said again, “Do you want to turn it on its side?” the videos show. Kueng checked Floyd’s pulse but could not detect it.
The four policemen were fired after the publication of the video of a witness. Days later, they were arrested and charged.
Thao served as a police officer for more than eight years, while Lane and Kueng were rookie officers with only a few days of experience, according to a criminal complaint.
Chauvin pleaded guilty last December to federal charges for violating Floyd’s civil rights during the arrest. He also pleaded guilty in a separate federal case, in which he is accused of violating the rights of a 14-year-old boy in 2017 for kneeling on the back and neck of a handcuffed teenager who did not resist.
As part of that plea deal, Chauvin faces a sentence of between 20 and 25 years in prison to be served concurrently with his current sentence of 22.5 years on the state murder charges.
Trends Wide’s Jason Kravarik contributed to this report.