Former police officer Thao, who was convicted in May of aiding Chauvin, has been sentenced.
Thao was sentenced to 4 years and 9 months in prison for “aiding and abetting second-degree murder” at the verdict hearing held today in Minneapolis.
Thao said he regrets Floyd’s death, but said he had no role in the incident and his conscience was clear.
In response to Thao’s speech with religious references, Judge Peter Cahill said, “I was hoping for a little more remorse, remorse and some acceptance of responsibility, and expected less sermons.”
Thao’s lawyer, Robert Paule, said they would appeal.
Thao was sentenced to 3.5 years in prison in the other federal case where he was charged with “violating Floyd’s civil rights”.
He drove the crowd away
Thao was found guilty in May, after ex-police officer Chauvin pressed his knees on Floyd’s neck, while keeping witnesses away from the scene.
In the 177-page judgment, Judge Cahill said, “Like those who watched from the sidelines without getting involved, Thao could see that Floyd was gradually dying when his neck was pinched.” had used the phrase.
Cahill, however, stated that Thao made the conscious decision to actively participate in Floyd’s death, adding that “He held back eyewitnesses and even prevented an off-duty Minneapolis firefighter from performing the emergency response Floyd needed so much.”
Thao is the last of three ex-cops to be convicted for assisting Chauvin in the murder of Floyd.
George Floyd incident
On May 25, 2020, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, police officer Derek Chauvin marked the country’s agenda by pressing his knee to his neck for 9 minutes and 29 seconds when he detained 46-year-old black George Floyd on suspicion of fraud.
Floyd, who begged for minutes “I can’t breathe”, was taken to the hospital by the emergency medical teams who came to the scene, but it was stated that he died later.
Images of the incident sparked discussions of police violence against black people in the country and caused violent protests that lasted for months in many cities.
Chauvin, who was accused of causing Floyd’s death, was detained 4 days after the incident and was sentenced to 22.5 years in prison on charges of 2nd and 3rd degree murder and 2nd degree manslaughter.