Three Former Cops Indicted In George Floyd Murder To Remain Free On Bail Until 2022

Former Minneapolis officers Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane are facing trial on charges of aiding and abetting second-degree murder and manslaughter.

They were originally set to face trial on August 23, coming after Chauvin was found guilty of murdering Floyd. However, the trial has now been pushed back to 2022 and they’ll remain free on bail until their court date.

Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill made the decision to change the date in order to establish distance between two sets of proceedings: the case at hand involving the three officers; and a federal case after a grand jury indicted all four officers, accusing them of violating Floyd’s constitutional rights during his arrest and murder.

Cahill said it was needed due to the heightened publicity around both cases. While all three defence lawyers agreed to the postponement, the state, via assistant attorney general Matthew Frank, didn’t agree with the delay, as per the News and Star.

Thao, Kueng and Lane were originally separated from Chauvin in order to comply with COVID-19 restrictions. Chauvin, who was found guilty of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and manslaughter, is due to be sentenced on June 25.

As reported by the Star Tribune, Rev. Al Sharpton said the federal charges against the officers show the Justice Department ‘does not excuse it nor allow police to act as though as what they do is acceptable behaviour in the line of duty.’

If you have a story you want to tell, send it to UNILAD via [email protected]