As Derek Chauvin sits in jail currently serving a 22.5-year sentence for the murder of Floyd as the three fellow officers under his direction that day Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane  were arraigned before US District Magistrate Judge Tony N. Leung on federal civil rights charges. All three pleaded not guilty.

Thao, Kueng and Lane are charged for aiding and abetting second-degree murder and aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter in in the death of George Floyd when Chauvin held a knee to his neck for over 9 minutes killing him.

A federal grand jury indicted Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane   in May on charges they violated Floyd’s constitutional on May 25, 2020.

The indictment claims, Thao and Kueng also failed to intervene in Chauvin’s use of unreasonable force.

Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane   appeared at the hearing remotely via videoconference. Chauvin appeared via video from  the state’s maximum-security prison

Kueng and Thao are requesting  their federal trials be separated from Chauvin because of the fear they would be unfairly prejudiced if they went to trial with Chauvin in the court.

Court documents site the evidence against Chauvin would confuse the jury and deprive Kueng of his right to a fair trial. Also stated would be a  conflict of interest due to Chauvin’s level of culpability in Floyd’s death, saying “the jurors will not be able to follow the Court’s instructions and compartmentalize the evidence as it related to Mr. Kueng.”

Image Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office