Three former Minneapolis cops were found guilty of violating George Floyd’s civil rights in a federal trial Thursday when they failed to intervene as Derek Chauvin fatally leaned on Floyd’s neck for almost 10 minutes.
Former Officers Tou Thao, who is of Hmong American; Thomas Lane, who is white; and J Kueng, who is black; were charged with depriving Floyd of his civil rights for not providing Floyd medical care during the May 25, 2020 fatal arrest.
Kueng knelt on Floyd’s back, Lane restrained his legs and Thao stopped concerned citizens from intervening as Floyd struggled to breathe and begged for his life.
The three former cops could face life in prison.
The jury of 18 people, including alternates, appeared to be mostly white and the judge presiding over the case stated during jury selection that the case had “absolutely nothing” to do with race. Federal justice officials did not release the demographics of the panel.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.