Three Former Minnesota Officers Found Guilty on Federal Charges in George Floyd’s Killing

Left to right: J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane, Tou Thao

Three former police officers face up to life in prison after being found guilty of violating George Floyd's civil rights by a federal jury in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Thursday.

After deliberating for two days the 12 jurors — four men and eight women — found ex-Minneapolis cops Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane, culpable for their actions during the arrest of Floyd, whose death at the hands of fellow officer Derek Chauvin in 2020 on video was the catalyst for worldwide protests against systemic racism.

According to the Department of Justice violating a person's civil rights "is punishable by a range of imprisonment up to a life term, or the death penalty, depending upon the circumstances of the crime, and the resulting injury, if any." Federal sentencing guidelines, however, may make the most severe punishment unlikely.

Thao, Kueng and Lane were charged with depriving Floyd of his civil rights while acting under government authority and failing to provide Floyd with medical care. Thao and Kueng faced an additional count for failing to stop Chauvin from initiating the actions which caused Floyd’s death.

Chauvin was convicted of murder and manslaughter last year in state court. A state trial is scheduled for June against the men on charges of aiding and abetting murder and manslaughter.