George Floyd Case: More Charges Filed Against Ex-Minneapolis Cops

MINNEAPOLIS — Three more former Minneapolis police officers involved in the arrest of George Floyd were criminally charged Wednesday. Additionally, the previously-filed murder charge against former officer Derek Chauvin was elevated from third-degree murder to second-degree.

Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane, and Tou Thao were each charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter, according to court records.

All four officers were fired the day after Floyd's death.

"George Floyd mattered," Attorney General Keith Ellison said at a news conference Wednesday. "We will seek justice for him and for you and we will find it."

Arrest warrants were issued for Kueng, Lane, and Thao, Ellison said. Kueng was booked into the Hennepin County Jail at 2:39 p.m.

Gov. Tim Walz appointed Ellison as the special prosecutor in the Floyd case Sunday. He will be assisted by Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman and his office.

Ellison said from here on, he will not be able to make many public statements about the case. He said it's his team's job "not to make statements in the press, but do our talking in court."

Ben Crump, the civil rights attorney representing Floyd's family, said they cannot celebrate as an arrest is not a conviction and they want full, not partial, justice.

"I do want to acknowledge the family's gratification to attorney general Keith ellison; We obviously were disappointed when the previous district attorney said there may no be evidence [to support charging criminally]," Crump said at a news conference after the additional charges were announced. "That was devastating to this family, because we all saw the video."

On Friday, Chauvin was charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter in connection with the death of Floyd, who died following an arrest on Memorial Day. Chauvin is the officer who was seen with his knee on Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes during the arrest.

Floyd, 46, later died after saying that he was struggling to breathe during the arrest, video shows.

Floyd suffered a cardiac arrest when he was restrained by Chauvin during the arrest, according to the Hennepin County Medical Examiner. The manner of death was listed as homicide.

Floyd "experienced a cardiopulmonary arrest while being restrained" by police, the examiner states. Other significant conditions Floyd suffered include arteriosclerotic and hypertensive heart disease, fentanyl intoxication, and recent methamphetamine use, according to the report.

Minneapolis police union president Bob Kroll is currently working to reinstate all four police officers. They were fired without due process, says Kroll.

Walz reacts, visits George Floyd memorial Wednesday

"I laid flowers at George Floyd’s memorial this morning," Walz said in a statement. "As a former high school history teacher, I looked up at the mural of George’s face painted above and I reflected on what his death will mean for future generations. What will our young people learn about this moment? Will his death be just another blip in a textbook? Or will it go down in history as when our country turned toward justice and change? It’s on each of us to determine that answer.

"The charges announced by Attorney General Keith Ellison today are a meaningful step toward justice for George Floyd," Walz added. "But we must also recognize that the anguish driving protests around the world is about more than one tragic incident."

Also read: Head Of MN AFL-CIO Calls For Cop Union's Bob Kroll To Resign