Ex-Minneapolis Officer Pleads Guilty in George Floyd Death

A former Minneapolis police officer pleaded guilty on Monday to aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter in the May 2020 killing of George Floyd.

J. Alexander Kueng’s guilty plea will allow one count of aiding and abetting second-degree murder to be dismissed. 

Kueng had helped to restrain Floyd, who was handcuffed and knelt on his back during the May 25, 2020, killing that was recorded on video.

He is the second officer to plead guilty to the state charge. Thomas Lane earlier pleaded guilty to the same count. Their former colleague, Tou Thao, is still scheduled to face trial this week.

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This photo provided by the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office in Minnesota, June 3, 2020, shows J. Alexander Kueng.
(Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office via AP, File)

All three have already been convicted on federal counts of willfully violating the civil rights of Floyd.

This photo provided by the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office in Minnesota on June 3, 2020, shows former Minneapolis Police Officer Tou Thao.
(Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office via AP, File)

Lane was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in the federal case. Kueng was sentenced to three years and Thao was sentenced to 3 1/2 years.

This photo provided by the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office in Minnesota on June 3, 2020, shows former Minneapolis Police Officer Thomas Lane.
(Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office)

Officer Derek Chauvin has already been convicted of state murder and manslaughter charges in Floyd’s killing last year and is currently serving 22 1/2 years in the state case. Chauvin had pinned Floyd to the ground with a knee on Floyd’s neck as he repeatedly said he couldn’t breathe.

State sentencing guidelines for a person with no criminal record, like Kueng, call for a range from about 3 1/2 years to four years and nine months in prison for second-degree unintentional manslaughter. The presumptive sentence is four years.

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If Kueng had been convicted of aiding and abetting second-degree murder, he would have faced a presumptive 12 1/2 years in prison.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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