J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao were each convicted in February of violating Floyd’s civil rights and of failing to intervene to stop their colleague Derek Chauvin during the restraint. Kueng is set to be sentenced at 10 a.m. Wednesday, followed by Thao an hour later.
Prosecutors asked the court in June to sentence Kueng and Thao to “significantly more” time than former officer Thomas Lane but less time than Chauvin, according to court records. Thao’s defense team asked for a sentence of 2 years, while Kueng’s defense team filed its recommendation under seal.
The sentencing comes more than two years after Lane, Thao and Kueng were fired and arrested for their actions — or lack thereof — in May 2020 as Chauvin pressed his knee into the neck and back of Floyd, who was handcuffed and lying on his stomach, for more than nine minutes.
During the arrest, Kueng restrained Floyd’s torso, Lane held down Floyd’s legs and Thao stood nearby and held back a crowd of upset bystanders. Harrowing video of the incident and Floyd’s ignored pleas for help spread widely and launched an international protest movement against police brutality and anti-Black violence.
Kueng told jurors that he deferred to Chauvin on what to do during the arrest because Chauvin was the senior officer on scene with more than 15 years of experience.
Thao told the court he assumed the other officers on the scene were “taking care” of Floyd, and that his role transitioned to crowd and traffic control. When prosecutors asked Thao during cross-examination why he didn’t tell Chauvin to get off Floyd’s neck, he said: “I think I would trust a 19-year veteran to figure it out.”