NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
J. Alexander Kueng, one of three Minneapolis police officers charged with federal civil rights violations in George Floyd’s killing, took the stand Wednesday at their trial.
Kueng is the second of the former officers to testify. Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao are charged with violating Floyd’s constitutional rights when Officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for 9 1/2 minutes as the 46-year-old Black man was handcuffed, facedown on the street.
Kueng knelt on Floyd’s back. Lane held his legs and Thao kept bystanders back. The May 2020 killing triggered protests worldwide and a re-examination of racism and policing.
Former Minneapolis police officer Tou Thao testified that he did not realize George Floyd was in danger even as bystanders became increasingly vocal.
(Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office via AP, File)
GEORGE FLOYD DEATH: MINNEAPOLIS POLICE OFFICERS’ CONDUCT ‘INCONSISTENT’ WITH DEPARTMENT POLICY, EXPERT SAYS
Earlier Wednesday, Thao testified that he knew Floyd’s pleas that he couldn’t breathe were becoming weaker, but still did not realize Floyd was in danger even as bystanders became increasingly vocal.
Under cross-examination by prosecutor LeeAnn Bell, Thao said he did not relay any of the onlookers’ concerns about Floyd’s well-being to the other officers, and did not check his pulse after bystanders asked him to. He said he was relying on the other three officers at the scene to care for Floyd’s medical needs while he controlled the crowd and traffic and that he didn’t think Chauvin’s knee was on Floyd’s trachea.
Thao, Kueng and Lane are accused of depriving Floyd of medical care. Kueng and Thao are also accused of failing to intervene to stop the killing.
Prosecutors rested their case Monday after calling to the stand doctors, police officers and bystanders to build an argument that the officers should have intervened to stop Chauvin and that they violated their…
Source : foxnews
