MINNEAPOLIS – A former Minneapolis police officer pleaded guilty Monday to aiding second degree murder in George Floyd’s murder just as jury selection was about to begin, although another former police officer is still under process.
The plea deal for J. Alexander Kueng includes three and a half years in prison, with prosecutors agreeing to drop the count of accomplice in second degree murder. Kueng is the second police officer to plead guilty to the state charge, after Thomas Lane, who pleaded guilty earlier this year.
Their former colleague, Tou Thao, turned down a plea deal earlier this year, telling a judge that it would “lie” to accept such a deal. Jury selection for Thao was to start later on Monday.
All three were convicted in February on federal charges of intentionally violating George Floyd’s civil rights. Lane was sentenced to two and a half years in the federal case. Kueng was sentenced to three years and Thao to three and a half years, but for some Floyd family members and activists the sentences were too low.
African American George Floyd, who was 46, died on May 25, 2020, after officer Derek Chauvin, who is white, pinned him to the ground with a knee on his neck. The murder, captured in a widely viewed video, sparked protests in Minneapolis and around the world against racial injustice.
Kueng and Lane helped restrain Floyd, who was handcuffed. Kueng knelt on Floyd’s back and Lane kept Floyd’s legs down. Thao prevented bystanders from speaking during the 9.5-minute speech.
As part of his plea deal, Kueng admitted to holding the suspect’s torso, who knew from experience and training that holding a handcuffed person in a prone position created a substantial risk and that holding the suspect was unreasonable under the circumstances.
Kueng’s request implies that he will serve his state and federal sentences, just like Lane does.
Derek Chauvin was convicted of murder and state murder last year and is currently serving a 22.5-year sentence in the state case. He also pleaded guilty to a federal charge of George Floyd’s civil rights violation and was sentenced to 21 years for this and an unrelated case involving a 14-year-old boy. At the same time he is serving his sentence at the Federal Correctional Institution in Tucson, Arizona.
