High bail for other slay cops

Bail was set at up to $1 million each Thursday for the three Minneapolis cops who were at the scene when George Floyd died after a fourth officer knelt on his neck while making an arrest.

J. Alexander Kueng, 26; Thomas Lane, 37, and Tou Thao, 34, could be released on bail of $750,000 apiece if certain conditions are met, Judge Paul Scoggin said, before ordering them to appear at Hennepin County District Court again on June 29.

“I’m hard-pressed to come up with any comparisons in this case,” Scoggin said when agreeing with Assistant State Attorney General Matthew Frank that bail should be set higher than the $50,000 requested by the ex-officers’ attorneys.

The three were charged with one count each of aiding and abetting seconddegree murder and aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. The murder-related charge carries a sentence of up to 40 years. None of the men entered pleas.

The hearing got heated when Earl Gray, the attorney for Lane, said his client did nothing wrong, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Gray said all the blame should go to fired Officer Derek Chauvin, who was seen on video kneeling on Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes on May 25.

“What was he supposed to do … go up to Mr. Chauvin, grab him and throw him off ?” Gray said of his client.

Gray added that Lane performed CPR on Floyd in an ambulance.

“Is CPR probable cause for aiding and abetting a felony?” Gray asked.

Chauvin, 44, saw the top count against him upgraded Wednesday from third-degree murder to second-degree, which carries a maximum 40-year sentence.