George Floyd Death: Former officer snaps at prosecutor when asked why he didn't try to get Derek Chauvin off George Floyd - CNN
2/16/22, 8:41 PM
Former officer snaps at
prosecutor when asked why he
didn't try to get Derek Chauvin off
George
Floyd
US
LIVE TV
By Bill Kirkos and Amir Vera, CNN
! Updated 9:14 PM ET, Wed February 16, 2022
St. Paul, Minnesota (CNN) — Cross-examination of Tou Thao got tense Wednesday as the ex-o6cer snapped at
the prosecutor for asking why he didn't tell Derek Chauvin to get o? George Floyd's neck and back during the 9
minutes and 29 seconds.
"I think I would trust a 19-year veteran to figure it out," Thao said on the stand.
Thao is one of three o6cers -- including J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane -- standing trial in federal court for
violating Floyd's civil rights.
All three are each charged with deprivation of rights under
color of law as Chauvin restrained Floyd. Thao and Kueng are
also charged with willfully failing to intervene in Chauvin's use
of unreasonable force, resulting in Floyd's death.
The three have pleaded not guilty to the federal charges and
are being tried together. Chauvin admitted guilt in December
as part of a plea deal.
All three former o6cers will face a state trial later this year on
charges of aiding and abetting in Floyd's murder.
Related Article: First of the o6cers
involved in George Floyd's death testifies
that using a knee to restrain a subject
was a common Minneapolis PD practice
Kueng and Thao told US District Judge Paul Magnuson on
Monday they planned to testify in their own defense.
Lane, the rookie o6cer who held down Floyd's legs during the
fatal restraint, told the judge Tuesday that he also planned to
take the stand. His attorney Earl Gray had told Magnuson a
day earlier he wanted to speak with Lane about it before
giving a final decision.
Kueng is expected to take the stand after Thao.
https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/16/us/george-floyd-federal-civil-rights-trial-wednesday/index.html
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George Floyd Death: Former officer snaps at prosecutor when asked why he didn't try to get Derek Chauvin off George Floyd - CNN
2/16/22, 8:41 PM
Prosecutor grew frustrated during Thao's
testimony
Assistant US Attorney LeeAnn Bell had been pressing Thao on his reasoning for not interfering in Chauvin's
handling of Floyd, how often Thao faced toward his fellow o6cers during the restraint that lead to Floyd's death
and whether Thao took any action to assess Floyd's medical condition, including when he was asked to do so by a
bystander.
"Did you communicate to your partners what you were being told by the bystanders," Bell asked.
"No," Thao replied.
Former Minneapolis police oAcer Tou Thao is pictured in a courtroom sketch testifying at his
trial in the killing of George Floyd on Tuesday, February 15, 2022.
Bell also asked Thao if he knew when Floyd stopped breathing, but defense attorney Robert Paule objected to the
question. It was one of a dozen objections during Wednesday morning's cross-examination. Bell seemingly
https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/16/us/george-floyd-federal-civil-rights-trial-wednesday/index.html
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George Floyd Death: Former officer snaps at prosecutor when asked why he didn't try to get Derek Chauvin off George Floyd - CNN
2/16/22, 8:41 PM
became frustrated at the number of times she had to pause and rephrase her questions due to the number of
objections.
"Did you hear him talking during the fifth minute or not?" Bell pressed.
"It's a possibility," Thao said. When asked if he could confirm if he noticed Floyd's eyes were closed, Thao said he
couldn't tell.
Bell continued asking Thao about his knowledge of Floyd's medical condition, of which Paule continued to
vehemently object.
During redirect, Paule asked Thao why he thought it was
necessary to restrain Floyd.
Related Article: 3 of the o6cers involved
in George Floyd's death will testify during
federal civil rights trial
Paule asked.
Thao said that one of the purposes for restraining Floyd was
to protect him from potentially getting up and injuring himself
or bystanders, adding the measure was partly done "to save
his life."
"Were your intentions in any way to cause Mr. Floyd harm?"
"Oh no," Thao responded.
Defense attorneys also called Thao's wife, Sheng Yang, to testify later Wednesday morning. Yang told the jury her
husband "had never gotten into trouble before with the law," and that Thao had never even received a parking
ticket.
After Bell objected to the relevance of the questioning, Judge Magnuson instructed Paule to move on saying "we
aren't going into speeding tickets. I assure you of that."
Thao said using a knee was commonplace in
MPD
During his testimony Tuesday, Thao testified that an o6cer using their knee to restrain a suspect was taught at the
police academy. He also said he assumed other o6cers were "taking care" of Floyd while he was helping control
the crowd.
Paule showed the jury several photographs from Thao's time in the police academy that pictured instructors using
their knees to subdue and arrest subjects during training exercises.
Calling one such photo a "handcu6ng drill," Thao said it was common practice to be taught how to subdue
people in a prone position while using a knee to control the person.
"Do you see if those two o6cers are using their knees?" Paule asked Thao.
https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/16/us/george-floyd-federal-civil-rights-trial-wednesday/index.html
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George Floyd Death: Former officer snaps at prosecutor when asked why he didn't try to get Derek Chauvin off George Floyd - CNN
2/16/22, 8:41 PM
"They are," Thao responded.
One photo showed a use-of-force instructor smiling while his knee is on the neck of the subject in the exercise.
"Is this something that was typically taught at the academy while you were there?" Paule continued.
"Yes," Thao responded.
Former Minneapolis police oAcer Tou Thao testified that it was not uncommon to see other
police oAcers use their knees while arresting someone.
When asked why a knee would be used in the exercises, Thao said it was "to prevent them from rolling around or
get up."
During the incident that led to Floyd's death, Thao testified that even though he had been waived o? from
responding to the scene after other o6cers had arrived, he decided to continue assisting.
"From my experience, Cup Foods is hostile to police," he told the jury. "It's a well-known Bloods gang hangout."
Thao said he thought "it was obvious" Floyd was under the influence of drugs or alcohol, partly because he was
"very sweaty."
As the scene grew more tense and chaotic, Thao testified his role shifted to becoming a "human tra6c cone,"
ensuring that cars would not hit the o6cers and the ambulance that had been called could easily spot them.
https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/16/us/george-floyd-federal-civil-rights-trial-wednesday/index.html
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George Floyd Death: Former officer snaps at prosecutor when asked why he didn't try to get Derek Chauvin off George Floyd - CNN
2/16/22, 8:41 PM
"I knew the crowd was starting to gather up and cause issues," Thao said. "At that point, I have a di?erent role,
which is to do crowd control to allow them to attend to Mr. Floyd."
Juror dismissed due to stomach flu
A juror was dismissed Wednesday because they contracted the stomach flu or had eaten something and as a
result is ill," Judge Magnuson said.
The juror was one of the five alternates, court spokeswoman Rebeccah Parks confirmed to CNN.
The 12 juror panel is still comprised of five men and seven women. There are now four alternates, one man and
three women.
This is the second juror to be dismissed in the case. Last week a juror was released after disclosing that his son is
dealing with a serious mental health issue.
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https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/16/us/george-floyd-federal-civil-rights-trial-wednesday/index.html
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George Floyd Death: Former officer snaps at prosecutor when asked why he didn't try to get Derek Chauvin off George Floyd - CNN
2/16/22, 8:41 PM
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