Niner
Long time Websleuther
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- Aug 18, 2003
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I think I got it now. Thao is going for a Bench trial.
Just before a trial concerning George Floyd's murder, an ex-officer pleads guilty
Oct. 24, 2022
.....
As a trial was set to begin on Monday for two ex-officers charged with aiding and abetting the manslaughter and murder of Floyd, one of the former officers — J. Alexander Kueng — accepted a plea deal that will require him plead guilty to one charge. And instead of a jury trial, Tou Thao's case will now be decided by a judge.
[.....]
But on Monday morning, Kueng, 29, accepted a plea deal in which he will plead guilty to aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter of Floyd, and the charge of his aiding and abetting Floyd's murder will be dropped. The deal calls for Kueng to be sentenced to 3 1/2 years in prison, according to The Associated Press.
[.....]
In the plea deal read Monday, "Kueng admitted that he should have known about the dangers of 'positional asphyxia' due to his training as a police officer. He also admitted that he heard Floyd saying he couldn't breathe and had stopped talking, and that the 'restraint of Mr. Floyd was unreasonable under the circumstances' and unconstitutional," Minnesota Public Radio reported.
[.....]
He began serving his federal sentence earlier this month at a prison in Lisbon, Ohio. Kueng's plea will allow him to serve his state and federal terms concurrently, the AP reported.
[.....]
But on Monday morning, Thao agreed to a bench trial instead of a jury trial over the aiding and abetting manslaughter charge. The state agreed to drop the aiding and abetting murder charge if he received a conviction at the bench trial. Witnesses won't need to testify again, and instead attorneys will get evidence to the court by Nov. 17, according to MPR. Judge Peter Cahill will then get 90 days to decide the case.
The presumed sentence if Thao is convicted of the aiding and abetting manslaughter charge will be approximately 48 months, MPR's Jon Collins reports.
[.....]
Thao had earlier rejected a plea deal that would have required him to plead guilty and receive a sentence of 36 months. Thao said it would be a "lie and a sin" for him to plead guilty, Minnesota Public Radio reported.
The presumptive sentence if he had been found guilty of aiding and abetting murder was 150 months, MPR reported.
In July, Thao was sentenced to serve 42 months in prison on federal charges of depriving Floyd of his constitutional rights. He began serving his federal sentence earlier this month at a facility in Lexington, Ky.
[.....]
Chauvin was found guilty in April 2021 on state charges of unintentional second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. He was sentenced two months later to 22 ½ years in prison.
He has appealed the jury's verdict. As NPR's Bill Chappell reported in April, Chauvin is asking the Minnesota Court of Appeals to do one of three things: "toss his conviction and send his case back to Hennepin County; reverse the result and order a new trial in a new venue; or order Chauvin to be sentenced to a lesser punishment."
In federal court, Chauvin pleaded guilty to violating a federal criminal civil rights statute in two separate incidents, and received a sentence of 21 years in prison.
Just before a trial concerning George Floyd's murder, an ex-officer pleads guilty
Oct. 24, 2022
.....
As a trial was set to begin on Monday for two ex-officers charged with aiding and abetting the manslaughter and murder of Floyd, one of the former officers — J. Alexander Kueng — accepted a plea deal that will require him plead guilty to one charge. And instead of a jury trial, Tou Thao's case will now be decided by a judge.
[.....]
But on Monday morning, Kueng, 29, accepted a plea deal in which he will plead guilty to aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter of Floyd, and the charge of his aiding and abetting Floyd's murder will be dropped. The deal calls for Kueng to be sentenced to 3 1/2 years in prison, according to The Associated Press.
[.....]
In the plea deal read Monday, "Kueng admitted that he should have known about the dangers of 'positional asphyxia' due to his training as a police officer. He also admitted that he heard Floyd saying he couldn't breathe and had stopped talking, and that the 'restraint of Mr. Floyd was unreasonable under the circumstances' and unconstitutional," Minnesota Public Radio reported.
[.....]
He began serving his federal sentence earlier this month at a prison in Lisbon, Ohio. Kueng's plea will allow him to serve his state and federal terms concurrently, the AP reported.
[.....]
But on Monday morning, Thao agreed to a bench trial instead of a jury trial over the aiding and abetting manslaughter charge. The state agreed to drop the aiding and abetting murder charge if he received a conviction at the bench trial. Witnesses won't need to testify again, and instead attorneys will get evidence to the court by Nov. 17, according to MPR. Judge Peter Cahill will then get 90 days to decide the case.
The presumed sentence if Thao is convicted of the aiding and abetting manslaughter charge will be approximately 48 months, MPR's Jon Collins reports.
[.....]
Thao had earlier rejected a plea deal that would have required him to plead guilty and receive a sentence of 36 months. Thao said it would be a "lie and a sin" for him to plead guilty, Minnesota Public Radio reported.
The presumptive sentence if he had been found guilty of aiding and abetting murder was 150 months, MPR reported.
In July, Thao was sentenced to serve 42 months in prison on federal charges of depriving Floyd of his constitutional rights. He began serving his federal sentence earlier this month at a facility in Lexington, Ky.
[.....]
Chauvin was found guilty in April 2021 on state charges of unintentional second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. He was sentenced two months later to 22 ½ years in prison.
He has appealed the jury's verdict. As NPR's Bill Chappell reported in April, Chauvin is asking the Minnesota Court of Appeals to do one of three things: "toss his conviction and send his case back to Hennepin County; reverse the result and order a new trial in a new venue; or order Chauvin to be sentenced to a lesser punishment."
In federal court, Chauvin pleaded guilty to violating a federal criminal civil rights statute in two separate incidents, and received a sentence of 21 years in prison.
