Former Minneapolis Police Officers Arrested For George Floyd Death UNSPECIFIED LOCATION AND DATE: (EDITORS NOTE: Best quality available) In this handout provided by Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office, former Minneapolis police officer Thomas Lane poses for a mugshot after being charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder in the death of George Floyd. The death sparked riots and protests in cities throughout the country after Floyd, a black man, was killed in police custody in Minneapolis on May 25. (Photo by Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office via Getty Images) Selfie of George Floyd
<p>A judge sentenced <strong>Thomas Lane </strong>to three years on Wednesday (September 21) for aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. The state charge stems from Lane&#8217;s involvement in the 2020 murder of <strong>George Floyd</strong>. According to reports, Thomas was the <a href="https://dev.theshaderoom.com/former-officers-j-alexander-kueng-tou-thao-sentenced-for-violating-george-floyds-civil-rights/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">former Minneapolis police officer</a> who pinned George&#8217;s legs to the ground.</p>
<p>Lane&#8217;s sentencing was expected this month after he pleaded guilty to the manslaughter charge in May. In exchange for the plea, <a href="https://dev.theshaderoom.com/update-thomas-lane-pleads-guilty-to-second-degree-manslaughter-in-exchange-for-dismissed-murder-charge-in-george-floyds-death/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">prosecutors dismissed</a> the &#8220;abetting second-degree unintentional murder&#8221; charge. A conviction for unintentional murder carried a mandatory 12-year sentence.</p>
<p>However, it looks like Thomas will only spend about <strong>three years</strong> total behind bars. Judge Peter Cahill also ruled on Wednesday that Lane will serve his state sentence concurrently with his federal sentence.</p>
<p>If Lane receives credit for good behavior on either charge, he&#8217;s likely to get out even earlier.</p>
<h5 style="text-align: center;"><strong>Thomas Receives Sentence For Violating George Floyd&#8217;s Civil Rights</strong></h5>
<p>In July, Thomas was <a href="https://dev.theshaderoom.com/former-minneapolis-police-officer-thomas-lane-sentenced-to-2-1-2-years-in-prison-for-violating-george-floyds-civil-rights/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">sentenced to 2.5 years</a> for violating George Floyd&#8217;s civil rights. Judge Paul Magnuson called Thomas&#8217;s role <em>&#8220;a very serious offense in which a life was lost.</em>&#8221; But, he still proceeded to lowball the sentence, despite prosecutors&#8217; request for at least five years. As a result, Thomas began serving the federal 2.5-year sentence at a Colorado facility on August 30.</p>
<p>As part of Wednesday&#8217;s ruling, Judge Cahill granted Thomas 31 days already served. The former cop also won&#8217;t have to pay restitution.</p>
<p>Like Lane&#8217;s federal sentence, Judge Cahill also lowballed the state sentence. According to the <em>Associated Press, </em>the <a href="https://apnews.com/article/death-of-george-floyd-police-minneapolis-thomas-lane-3b53fd4547d4144556c6dd30935dc3d3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">three-year sentence</a> for aiding and abetting falls &#8220;below the sentencing guidelines.&#8221; Still, Judge Cahill stuck with the three-year sentence the prosecution and defense teams settled on.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, evidence from the civil trial and court documents shows Thomas attempted to intervene in <a href="https://dev.theshaderoom.com/derek-chauvin-sentenced-to-22-%c2%bd-years-in-prison-for-the-murder-of-george-floyd/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Derek Chavin&#8217;s deadly restraint</a>. Lane asked twice to re-adjust George&#8217;s legs and body, but Derek objected. With only four days on the job, Thomas followed Derek&#8217;s superior commands.</p>
<p>Still, Thomas admitted in May that he helped Derek restrain George in a way that created an unreasonable risk. Additionally, Lane admitted that he heard George say he couldn&#8217;t breathe, recognized when George became silent, had no pulse, and appeared to lose consciousness.</p>
<h5 style="text-align: center;"><strong>George Floyd&#8217;s Family Speaks At The Sentencing</strong></h5>
<p>According to <em>CNN, </em>Lane <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/21/us/thomas-lane-sentencing/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">did not speak</a> in court on Wednesday. However, Judge Cahill and George Floyd&#8217;s family discussed the future beyond this case.</p>
<blockquote><p>&#8220;I think it was a very wise decision for you to accept responsibility nad move on with your life,&#8221; the judge said while acknowledging that Floyd&#8217;s family hasn&#8217;t been able to move on.</p></blockquote>
<p>Part of the reason Thomas pleaded guilty was to negotiate what he got in terms of a dismissed unintentional murder charge and serving his sentences concurrently. Not only that, Minnesota law makes it possible for him only to serve two-thirds of those sentences. These factors matter to Lane because, per his attorney&#8217;s former words, Thomas <em>&#8220;has a newborn baby and did not want to risk not being part of the child&#8217;s life.&#8221; </em></p>
<p>Meanwhile, on Wednesday, George&#8217;s family made it clear where they stand in a victim impact statement read by prosecutor Matthew Frank.</p>
<blockquote><p>&#8220;Talk about move on? Wow. Really? Me and my family would love to move on, but there&#8217;s just not a lot of accountability,&#8221; the statement said. &#8220;We will always show up for George Floyd, but never move on.&#8221;</p></blockquote>
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