On Wednesday, two former Minneapolis police officers were given jail terms for violating George Floyd’s constitutional rights during the arrest that was captured on film and resulted in his death on May 25, 2020. Tou Thao was given a sentence of 3 1/2 years, while J. Alexander Kueng received 3 years.
They are two of the four former Minneapolis Police Department officers that were charged for their involvement in Floyd’s killing. In February, a federal jury convicted Kueng, Thao, and former officer Thomas Lane guilty of violating the constitution because they knowingly withheld Floyd’s essential medical care throughout the arrest despite Floyd’s clear need for it.
After being found guilty of murder and manslaughter on state charges, former officer Derek Chauvin, who knelt on Floyd’s neck for 9 1/2 minutes in the bystander video that sparked worldwide protests against police brutality and racism after it went viral online more than two years ago, pleaded guilty last year to violating Floyd’s civil rights as well as the civil rights of a teenager in a separate case. He was been given a 21-year federal jail term.
Lane, who repeatedly requested that Floyd be turned onto his side so he could breathe, was recently sentenced to 2 1/2 years after being found guilty of one federal offense. The jury found that Kueng and Thao denied the 46-year-old Black man medical attention and did nothing to stop Derek Chauvin, leading to their conviction on two counts.
Lane is awaiting punishment after entering a guilty plea to a state charge of encouraging second-degree homicide. The second trial for Kueng and Thao, where they are accused of helping to commit second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter, is set for October 24 in state court.