(Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
Thomas Lane is a free man again. The former Minneapolis Police Department officer was behind bars for his involvement in the fatal arrest of George Floyd in 2020.
Lane was one of four former officers charged in Floyd’s death. However, he is the first to be released from behind bars. Multiple media reports state that Lane left a Colorado prison on Tuesday (August 20).
He served a federal and state sentence at the same time. Lane reportedly satisfied his federal sentencing in April but had to wait it out until now for his state charge. Despite being a free man, Lane still has one year of probation on his books, per CBS News.
As previously reported, in September 2022, Judge Peter Cahill sentenced Lane to three years in prison for the state charge of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. Thomas was the officer responsible for pinning George Floyd’s legs to the ground as Derek Chavin knelt on Floyd’s neck for nine minutes. Prosecutors dropped a similar charge with an “unintentional murder” aspect after Thomas pled guilty to manslaughter in May 2022.
For the federal charge of violating George Floyd’s civil rights, Judge Paul Magnuson gave Thomas 2.5 years in July 2022. He served his sentences at the same time.
Trial evidence showed that Thomas asked Derek twice to re-adjust George’s legs and body, but his senior officer objected. At that time, Thomas had only been on the job for four days and opted to follow Derek’s commands.
However, later in court, he admitted knowing the restraint carried an “unreasonable risk.” Moreover, Thomas said he heard Floyd’s pleas about struggling to breathe and recognized when the 46-year-old went silent and lost his consciousness and pulse.
Former Minneapolis officers J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao will remain behind bars until next year, per Fox9. Meanwhile, Derek Chauvin won’t be touching non-prison grass until 2038.
Earlier this month, officials temporarily transferred Chauvin from a Tuscan, Arizona, federal prison to a facility in Oklahoma City, per Fox5 Atlanta. The transfer remains temporary and occurred after his hospitalized recovery from a prisoner stabbing him 22 times in November 2023.
