4 ex-officers indicted
Grand jury says Chauvin, others violated Floyd’s civil rights.
A federal grand jury Friday indicted former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin and three other former officers on charges of violating George Floyd’s civil rights last year during the arrest that caused Floyd’s death, a move that could offer another measure of accountability in a case that sparked nationwide protests over abusive policing.
Justice Department prosecutors said Chauvin, Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao, who took part in apprehending Floyd, who was Black, will stand trial on two counts apiece. Former officer Thomas Lane will face a single charge.
The announcement came less than three weeks after Chauvin, who is white, was found guilty on three murder and manslaughter counts in a state trial that focused on his use of force in Floyd’s arrest. Chauvin put his knee on Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes as the 46-yearold was prone on the pavement and complained of being unable to breathe. Chauvin’s sentencing is set for June 25.
In a separate indictment, Chauvin also will face two counts of violating the rights of a 14-year-old boy during an arrest in September 2017, in which the officer is accused of holding the boy by the neck and hitting him twice with a flashlight, causing injuries.
Kueng, Lane and Thao are facing state charges of aiding and abetting second-degree murder and manslaughter in the Floyd case. Their trial is set to begin in late August. Kueng is Black, Lane is white and Thao is Asian American.
The federal charges could add additional time in prison or other penalties, independent of state-level convictions.
Attorneys for the former officers did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
“The federal government has a responsibility to protect the civil rights of every American and to pursue justice to the fullest extent of federal law,” Minneapolis Attorney General Keith Ellison said in a statement. “Federal prosecution for the violation of George Floyd’s civil rights is entirely appropriate.”
Justice Department officials said the decision to file charges against the officers was the result of an intensive investigation by Civil Rights Division lawyers who have been in Minneapolis for months. Last month, Attorney General Merrick Garland announced that Justice will conduct a “pattern or practice” investigation to determine whether the Minneapolis police have systemically engaged in unlawful conduct.
The intensifying federal scrutiny reflects the Biden administration’s sense of urgency in addressing abusive policing in the wake of the social justice demonstrations that swept the country after Floyd’s death May 25, 2020. But historically, winning convictions against officers has been difficult, with prosecutors needing to clear a higher standard than in a normal self-defense case.
In a statement, the Rev. Al Sharpton, head of the National Action Network, hailed the indictments of Chauvin and the other officers as a “significant development” in the efforts to change policing. Sharpton cited the 2014 police killings of Eric Garner in Staten Island, N.Y., and Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., in which officers did not face federal charges.
“We have a Justice Department that deals with police criminality and does not excuse it nor allow police to act as though what they do is acceptable behavior in the line of duty,” Sharpton said.
The federal indictment charges Chauvin with using “unreasonable force” in subduing Floyd and charges Thao and Kueng with failing to intervene to stop it. All four officers are charged with failing to help provide medical care to Floyd and “thereby acting with deliberate indifference to a substantial risk of harm.”