Tou Thao, the former Minneapolis Police Department officer to be found guilty in a state court for his involvement in the murder of George Floyd, was sentenced to four years and nine months on Monday despite maintaining his innocence.
The live Sentencing hearing of Tou Thao (Source: Screenshot from a video of Trial)
Former Minneapolis Thao Pleads Guilty During the Sentencing Hearing
According to the news released by CBS News, on May 25, 2020, Thao testified that he was only acting as a “human traffic cone” to keep back onlookers who had gathered to watch as former White Officer Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for 9 1/2 minutes as the Black man begged for his life. Floyd’s waning sobs of “I can’t breathe” were captured on video by a passerby. Thao was convicted guilty of second-degree murder in May by Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill. According to Cahill’s 177-page decision, Thao’s actions kept Chauvin and two other former officers—including an EMT—away from the crowd, enabling his colleagues to continue holding Floyd and obstructing the ability of onlookers to render aid.
During the sentencing hearing, Thao testified to the court for 20 minutes about his 340 days in jail and his rediscovery of Christianity. Despite denying any participation, he claimed to be “distressed” by Floyd’s passing. “I did not commit these crimes,” Thao insisted. I won’t betray God, act like Judas, or join a gang to protect myself. Cahill stated, that he was hoping for a little more guilt, regret, recognition of some culpability, and less preaching after three years of reflection. Even more, than what the prosecution requested, he gave Thao a sentence of 57 months in jail or over five years.
As an experienced, senior officer who was in the best position to save George Floyd, Cahill remarked, “I think your culpability is less than Mr. Chauvin, but well above Mr. Kueng and Mr. Lane.” Robert Paule, Thao’s lawyer, declared that an appeal would be filed. He declined to say anything more. During the hearing, Assistant Attorney General Erin Eldridge stated that Floyd’s last words “reverberated across the globe.”
The woman claimed that Floyd has narrated his death through a restraint that lasted more than nine long minutes until he lost consciousness, immediately stopped breathing, and his heart stopped beating. She claimed that Thao “only stood by and allowed it to happen” and prevented others from rushing to the dying man’s aid. “He knew better and he was trained to do better,” Eldridge stated.
Floyd “narrated his death throughout a restraint that lasted more than nine long minutes until he lost consciousness, stopped breathing, and his heart stopped beating,” according to the woman, who also claimed that Thao “stood by and allowed it to happen” and prevented others from rushing to the dying man’s aid. “He knew better, and he was trained to do better,” Eldridge continued. Floyd’s death sparked protests all around the world and compelled a national examination of racism and police violence.
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Thao and Three Others Involved in the Incident Pleads Guilty on the Charges
Thao turned down a plea bargain on the state accusation because, in his words, “it would be lying” to accept guilt when he didn’t think he had broken any laws. Instead, he agreed to let Cahill decide the case based on the evidence from Thao and former officers Thomas Lane and J’s federal civil rights trial in 2022 and Chauvin’s murder trial in 2021. Alexander. All three defendants were found guilty during that federal court trial. Lane and Kueng admitted guilt to state charges of aiding and abetting manslaughter, while Chauvin admitted guilt to federal civil rights charges rather than undergoing a second trial.
The 3 1/2-year sentence Thao received for a separate conviction on a federal civil rights crime, which an appeals court upheld on Friday, will run concurrently with the sentence Cahill imposed on him on Monday. The four years recommended by Minnesota state guidelines were not included in his state sentence. Before Thao is moved to a Minnesota prison to complete the remainder of his term, the sentence will be served in federal prison with credit for time already served.
In addition to their respective federal penalties of 2 1/2 years and 3 years, Lane and Kueng also received state terms of 3 and 3 1/2 years, which they are presently serving. The typical sentence for an offender in Minnesota is two-thirds prison time and one-third parole. In the federal system, there is no such thing as parole, although good behavior allows offenders to shorten their terms of imprisonment.
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