Ever since the horrific murder of George Floyd in the hands of the Minneapolis Police back in 2020, most of the general public have been waiting for the four officers involved in popular police killing caught on tape to be brought to justice. Several reports have confirmed that all of the officers involved are now trying to minimize their own role in the public slaying, placing the blame on one another.
Also, the defense attorneys for the officers are seeking to have the four officers tried separately, but prosecutors want to try all four of the officers together. “Here, all four Defendants worked together to murder Floyd: Chauvin, Kueng, and Lane pinned Floyd face-down, while Thao stopped the crowd from intervening, enabling the other Defendants to maintain their positions,” prosecutors wrote in a court filing. “Defendants also discussed and coordinated their actions throughout the incident.”
The attorneys for Thomas Lane and Alex Kueng have contended that the two were rookies and were following the orders of Derek Chauvin, while Tou Thao was just focused on the crowd and the other three were focused on Floyd.
“The other defendants are clearly saying that, if a crime was committed, they neither knew about it nor assisted in it,” wrote Chauvin’s lawyer, Eric Nelson. “They blame Chauvin.”
Nelson claims that Chauvin, the officer who administered the deadly chokehold with his knee, believed Floyd was overdosing on fentanyl and that the rookies’ struggle to subdue Floyd made his condition worse. “If EMS had arrived just three minutes sooner, Mr. Floyd may have survived,” Nelson continued. “If Kueng and Lane had chosen to de-escalate instead of struggle, Mr. Floyd may have survived. If Kueng and Lane had recognized the apparent signs of an opioid overdose and rendered aid, such as administering naloxone, Mr. Floyd may have survived.”
Chauvin is charged with second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and manslaughter. Lane, Kueng, and Thao are charged with aiding and abetting both second-degree murder and manslaughter in the death of Mr. Floyd on May 25.
