*Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin reportedly plans to change his not guilty plea to federal charges that he violated George Floyd’s civil rights.
We previously reported that the four former Minneapolis police officers involved in the death of Floyd pleaded not guilty in federal court in September to charges they violated Floyd’s civil rights during his arrest in May 2020.
Chauvin, Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao were charged with violating Floyd’s constitutional rights in ways that “resulted in bodily injury to, and the death of, George Floyd,” according to the federal grand jury indictment.
Per CNN, a federal grand jury indicted the ex-cops in May. Thao and Kueng also were charged for failure to intervene while Chauvin used his knee on Floyd’s neck to crush the life out of him.
Floyd, a Black man, died on Memorial Day in 2020 after Chauvin, who is white, pinned his knee against Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes as Floyd cried out for his mother and said “I can’t breathe” more than 20 times. Video footage of the fatal encounter went viral, fueling worldwide protests in response to Floyd’s killing.
READ MORE: Former Minneapolis Officers Plead Not Guilty to Violating George Floyd’s Civil Rights
In April, Chauvin was convicted of second- and third-degree murder, as well as second-degree manslaughter. Under Minnesota law, the sentences are likely to run concurrently, meaning he would serve no more than 40 years in prison.
Meanwhile, a new filing in U.S. District Court in Minnesota indicated that Chauvin will enter a new plea this week to charges that he violated Floyd’s civil rights.
Chauvin, Thao, Kueng and Lane also face a charge for failing to give Floyd medical aid while detained.
According to the indictment, “the defendants saw George Floyd lying on the ground in clear need of medical care, and willfully failed to aid Floyd, thereby acting with deliberate indifference to a substantial risk of harm to Floyd.”
The federal indictment accuses Chauvin, Thao, Kueng and Lane of depriving Floyd of his rights when they witnessed him “in clear need” of medical care but “willfully failed to aid Floyd.”
The officers acted “with deliberate indifference to a substantial risk of harm,” the indictment said.
Thao, Kueng and Lane are charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter in Floyd’s death. They have pleaded not guilty and their state trial has yet to begin.
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