Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
<p>Former Minneapolis police officer <strong>Tou Thao</strong> <a href="https://www.mprnews.org/story/2023/05/02/thao-found-guilty-of-aiding-and-abetting-manslaughter-in-the-killing-of-george-floyd" target="_blank" rel="noopener">has been convicted</a> of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter in the killing of <strong>George Floyd</strong>, according to <em>MPR News</em>.</p>
<p>Thao, 37, was reportedly the officer who pushed bystanders back as his colleague <strong>Derek Chauvin</strong> kneeled on Floyd&#8217;s neck for over nine minutes on May 25, 2020.</p>
<p>Floyd died despite begging officers to let him up and repeatedly yelling, &#8220;I can&#8217;t breathe.&#8221;</p>
<p>Judge Peter Cahill <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/02/us/tou-thao-george-floyd-trial/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said in his verdict</a> that Thao &#8220;actively encouraged his three colleagues&#8217; dangerous prone restraint of Floyd,&#8221; per <em>CNN. </em></p>
<blockquote><p>&#8220;Like the bystanders, Thao could see Floyd&#8217;s life slowly ebbing away as the restraint continued. Yet, Thao made a conscious decision to actively participate in Floyd&#8217;s death: he held back the concerned bystander and even prevented an off-duty Minneapolis firefighter from rendering the medical aid Floyd so desperately needed.&#8221;</p></blockquote>
<p>All four former police officers have also been convicted in federal court for violating Floyd&#8217;s civil rights and sentenced to between two and a half and three and a half years. Chauvin was sentenced to more than 20 years.</p>
<p>They&#8217;ll serve the state and federal sentences at the same time in federal facilities.</p>

