Tou Thao Conviction: Holding Police Accountable for George Floyd’s Death and Calls for Reform

Tou Thao Conviction: Former Minneapolis police officer Tou Thao was convicted of keeping people away as other cops apprehended George Floyd. Thao was found guilty of second-degree murder in May. State prison awaits him for four years and 9 months. Mr. Floyd died prematurely.

After hearing about a bogus $20 bill, Minneapolis police arrested 46-year-old African American George Floyd on May 25, 2020. This caused events. Floyd was chained to Derek Chauvin’s knee for over nine minutes. Floyd feared. Thao and two other police officers restrained Floyd and prevented health-conscious others from approaching.

The county’s medical examiner confirmed that police killed Floyd by exerting pressure on his neck and holding him down.

Floyd’s death photo will be remembered. US-wide protests occurred. Institutional racism and police abuse demonstrations are growing worldwide.

Four Minneapolis police officers were dismissed the following day. Each cop was convicted and sentenced. Mr. Chauvin received the longest federal and state jail sentence, nearly 20 years.

Minneapolis and the Floyd family agreed to $27 million. Floyd’s accusation of police misconduct prompted this.

In 2021, white Officer Chauvin was convicted of second and third-degree murder for killing Floyd. 22 1/2. Chauvin received 21 extra years in prison for violating the Constitution in a federal trial.

Chauvin kept asking. The Minnesota appeals court rejected his murder case. Chauvin will petition the Supreme Court.

Other cops had legal issues. Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng pinned Floyd’s legs and back. They received state and federal penalties simultaneously.

Tou Thao Conviction Holding Police Accountable for George Floyd's Death and Calls for Reform
Image of Tou Thao

Thao, an Asian-American investigator, waived his jury trial in May, so a judge sentenced him. Helping and inciting a second-degree murder earned him four years and nine months in prison.

After Floyd’s death, the Minnesota Department of Human Rights investigated the Minneapolis Police Department and found a history of black racism. Police reforms followed.

A recent Justice Department study called the department racist for killing Black and Native American persons unnecessarily. Minneapolis officials will cooperate with federal officials to create a consent order to reform the police force.

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Our Reader’s Queries

What actually happened to George Floyd?

On May 25, 2020, George Perry Floyd Jr., an African-American man, was killed by a white police officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The incident occurred during Floyd’s arrest, which was prompted by a store clerk’s suspicion that he had used counterfeit money.

How many cops go to jail each year?

Over the span of 2007 to 2016, a total of 824 arrests were made of law enforcement officers in California. That’s about 82 arrests per year, out of the approximately 78,400 officers in the state during that time. This calculates to 0.1 percent of officers being arrested on an annual basis.