MINNEAPOLIS – New still-camera video of a third officer involved in George Floyd’s arrest captures for the first time the growing horror of bystanders who have begged officers to get off Floyd.
The video made for Thursday is of the fired police officer Tou Thao, one of 4 former Minneapolis police officers charged in the death of Floyd, a black man in handcuffs. Floyd died after a white officer, Derek Chauvin, pressed his opposite knee to Floyd’s neck for approximately 8 minutes on a street in South Minneapolis on May 25, while Floyd continually said he could no longer breathe. The death sparked large protests across the United States and beyond against racial injustice and police brutality.
Thao held off a crowd of nearly a dozen onlookers, many recording the scene with their cell phones, while Chauvin pinned Floyd with his knee. Two other officers, Thomas Lane and J. Kueng, detained Floyd, who suspected he had spent a false $ 20 bill at a grocery store.
In Thao’s video, a black guy in a Northside Boxing Club sweatshirt yells at Chauvin to “drop his neck (explosive), bro” and asks Thao “you’re going to leave him like this”, pointing at Floyd.
“Are you going to let me kill the guy in front of you, brother?” he asks Thao. “Brother, it’s not even moving (explosively) right now, brother. “
Thao orders the crowd to step onto the sidewalk. At one point he told viewers, “That’s why children don’t use drugs. “
When a man who identifies himself as a Minneapolis firefighter arrives out of uniform, Thao yells at him, “Back off!” She asks if the agents checked Floyd’s pulse.
“Let me see the pulse,” he asks the police.
“Check his pulse,” the guy said. You are wrong, brother. “Don’t do drugs”, brother? … What do you do well? “
The crowd becomes more agitated. “What are you doing (expletive)?” a woman yells. “He is dying. “
When the boy approaches Thao with his phone, Thao pushes him onto the sidewalk, yelling, “Get off the street!”
Prosecutors released footage from Thao’s camera earlier this week. On Monday, a still camera video of two of the other officials, Lane and Kueng, was released by order of the judge. This footage, along with Thao’s video, shows Floyd imploring officers as they struggle to get him into the squad car moments before his death.
Floyd continually said that he couldn’t breathe and called his mother before passing out. He was pronounced dead in a hospital that night, and his death sparked protests against racial injustice and police brutality around the world.
Chauvin is charged with momentary homicide, third degree murder, and manslaughter. Lane, Kueng and Thao are charged with being accessory to manslaughter and manslaughter. The 4 officials were fired and are due to stand trial in March.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, whose workplace is handling the case, asked for a verdict to verify the 4 officials together. Defense attorneys have until September 8 to respond.