Jury begins deliberating case of ex-cops charged with violating George Floyd’s civil rights

ST. PAUL, Minn. — The jury hearing the case against three former Minneapolis police officers charged with violating George Floyd’s civil rights has received instructions from the judge and started deliberating the verdict.

Prosecutors and defense attorneys spent a full day Tuesday in closing arguments that recapped a month of testimony and sought to sway the jury toward their view.

For prosecutors, J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao “chose to do nothing” as a fellow officer, Derek Chauvin, squeezed the life out of Floyd.

Defense attorneys countered that the officers were too inexperienced, weren’t trained properly and did not willfully violate Floyd’s rights.

The two officers who first responded to the scene on the day of Floyd’s death were rookie cops. Lane was working his fourth-ever shift, and Kueng was working his third shift. Both said they deferred to Chauvin’s years of police experience.

Kueng, Lane and Thao are charged with depriving Floyd of his right to medical care when Chauvin pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck. Kueng and Thao are also charged with failing to intervene to stop Chauvin during the May 25, 2020, killing.

Chauvin has already been convicted of Floyd’s murder last spring and was later sentenced to 22.5 years in prison.

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