Ex-cop who kneeled on Floyd’s back gets additional term
MINNEAPOLIS — The former Minneapolis police officer who kneeled on George Floyd's back while another officer kneeled on the Black man's neck was sentenced Friday to 3½ years in prison.
J. Alexander Kueng pleaded guilty in October to a state count of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. In exchange, a charge of aiding and abetting murder was dropped. Kueng is already serving a federal sentence for violating Floyd's civil rights, and the state and federal sentence will be served at the same time.
With credit for time served and different parole guidelines in the state and federal systems, Kueng will likely serve a total of about 2½ years behind bars. Kueng appeared at the hearing via video from a federal prison in Ohio. When given the chance to address the court, he declined.
Attorney Ben Crump, who has represented the family, said in a statement before the hearing that Kueng's sentencing “delivers yet another piece of justice for the Floyd family. ”
Floyd died on May 25, 2020, after former Officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on Floyd's neck for 9½ minutes as Floyd repeatedly said he couldn't breathe and eventually went limp. The killing, which was recorded on video by a bystander, sparked worldwide protests as part of a broader reckoning over racial injustice.
Kueng kneeled on Floyd's back during the restraint. ThenOfficer Thomas Lane held Floyd's legs and Tou Thao, also an officer at the time, kept bystanders from intervening. All of the officers were fired and faced state and federal charges.
As part of his plea agreement, Kueng admitted that he held Floyd's torso, that he knew from his experience and training that restraining a handcuffed person in a prone position created a substantial risk, and that the restraint of Floyd was unreasonable under the circumstances.
Matthew Frank, who led the prosecution for the Minnesota attorney general's office, said repeatedly during the hearing that Floyd was a crime victim and that the prosecution “focused on the officers” who caused his death. He added that the case was not meant to be a broader examination of policing, but added that he hopes it will reaffirm that police officers cannot treat those “who are in crisis as non-people or second-class citizens.”
Kueng's attorney, Thomas Plunkett, on Friday blamed the
Minneapolis Police Department's leadership for Floyd's death and Kueng's punishment. He accused Medaria Arradondo, the police chief at the time Floyd died, of failing to implement training to encourage officers to intervene when a colleagues is doing something wrong.
Kueng's sentencing brings the cases against all of the former officers a step closer to resolution, though the state case against Thao is still pending. Thao previously told Judge Peter Cahill that it “would be lying” to plead guilty. In October, he agreed to what's called a stipulated evidence trial on the aiding and abetting manslaughter count.