Tag: Tou Thao

Appeals court hears case of 3 ex-cops charged in Floyd death

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MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA — Attorneys for the state and for three former Minneapolis police officers charged in George Floyd ’s death appeared before the Minnesota Court of Appeals on Thursday as prosecutors sought to add an additional charge to the case.

Thomas Lane, J. Kueng and Tou Thao are scheduled to face trial next March on charges of aiding and abetting second-degree murder and manslaughter. Prosecutors want to add an additional count of aiding and abetting third-degree murder.

The three-judge panel has 90 days to rule. Based on an appeals court decision in February and a related ruling in the case of former officer Derek Chauvin that found the February ruling was binding, the judges could rule in favor of the state and send the case back to the lower court to add the charge. Continue reading.

Derek Chauvin, 3 former officers indicted on federal civil rights charges

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A federal grand jury Friday has indicted Derek Chauvin and three other former Minneapolis officers for civil rights violations related to the death of George Floyd.

Why it matters: The new charges mean the officers could face another high-profile criminal trial following a yearlong racial reckoning across the nation.

Details: The grand jury indicted Chauvin in two cases: for kneeling on Floyd’s neck for over nine minutes in May 2020 and for a similar arrest of a 14-year-old boy in 2017.  Continue reading.

Feds plan to indict Chauvin, other three ex-officers on civil rights charges

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Ex-cop would face federal charges in two cases; three others just in Floyd case. 

Leading up to Derek Chauvin’s murder trial, Justice Department officials had spent months gathering evidence to indict the ex-Minneapolis police officer on federal police brutality charges, but they feared the publicity frenzy could disrupt the state’s case.

So they came up with a contingency plan: If Chauvin were found not guilty on all counts or the case ended in a mistrial, they would arrest him at the courthouse, according to sources familiar with the planning discussions.

The backup plan would not be necessary. On April 20, the jury found Chauvin guilty on all three murder and manslaughter counts, sending him to the state’s most secure lockdown facility to await sentencing, and avoiding the riots many feared could engulf the city once again. Continue reading.

Police chief: George Floyd’s death was a ‘murder,’ not about lack of training

Two officers were trained on preventing suffocation.

Derek Chauvin and Tou Thao — two of the officers involved in killing George Floyd May 25 — both took department training on preventing suffocation in people being restrained face down, the Minneapolis Police Department confirmed.

In one of his most forceful comments yet on Floyd’s killing, Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo issued a statement Monday night, saying, “Chauvin knew what he was doing.”

“Mr. George Floyd’s tragic death was not due to a lack of training — the training was there,” he said. “This was murder — it wasn’t a lack of training. This is why I took swift action regarding the involved officers’ employment with MPD,” Arradondo said. Continue reading.

Minnesota charges three more former officers in George Floyd case

Axios logoMinnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison on Wednesday elevated charges against the former officer seen kneeling on George Floyd’s neck to second-degree murder, and also charged the three other former officers who were present with aiding and abetting murder, according to court documents.

Why it matters: Members of Floyd’s family and protesters across the country have demanded charges against all four officers on scene during his death.

  • Derek Chauvin, the former officer seen kneeling on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes, was originally charged last week with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
  • The three other former officers charged on Wednesday are Tou Thao, Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng. Continue reading.

Derek Chauvin in custody; other officers lay low

As the Twin Cities enter an anxious and uncertain weekend, fired Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin is in custody and accused of murder, while the three other ex-officers present at George Floyd’s fatal arrest are keeping an extremely low profile.

Tou Thao, videotaped watching as Chauvin continued to press on Floyd’s neck with his knee, has left Minnesota, his lawyer confirmed Friday. Criminal defense attorney Robert Paule said Thao is “safely elsewhere” and that he couldn’t comment further.

J Alexander Kueng, one of the two first officers at the scene who helped pin Floyd down, is believed to be staying with family in Minneapolis. Thomas K. Lane has left and didn’t tell anyone where he was going, a relative said Friday. Continue reading.