The officers have been charged with depriving Floyd's rights under color of law.
Derek Chauvin and three other former Minneapolis police officers included with George Floyd's death were indicted Friday on federal civil rights charges.
The three-count indictment alleges Chauvin, Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane deprived Floyd's rights when they saw him lying on the floor"in clear demand" of healthcare, but"willfully failed to aid Floyd, thereby acting with deliberate indifference to a significant risk of injury."
"Chauvin held his left knee across George Floyd's throat, along with his right knee on Floyd's back and arm, as George Floyd lay on the floor, handcuffed and unresisting, and retained his knees on Floyd's neck and torso even after Floyd became unresponsive," the indictment said. "This crime resulted in bodily injury to, and the passing of George Floyd."
In count two, the grand jury accused Thao and Kueng of being"aware that [Chauvin] was holding his knee around George Floyd's throat as Floyd lay handcuffed and unresisting, and that Defendant Chauvin continued to hold Floyd to the floor even after Floyd became unresponsive, and the defendants willfully failed to intervene to prevent Defendant Chauvin's use of unreasonable force"
Count three is contrary to four former officers, and asserts that by not giving Floyd medical attention and help, they"willfully deprived Mr. Floyd of his constitutional right not to be deprived of liberty without due process of law, which comprises a arrestee's right to be free of a police officer's deliberate indifference to his serious medical needs"
The Justice Department said Friday's indictment is distinct from its recently announced and still ongoing civil"pattern or practice" investigation looking into the policing practices of the total Minneapolis Police Department.
Civil rights attorneys in the Floyd instance Ben Crump, Antonio Romanucci and L. Chris Stewart said in a statement they are"supported by these charges."
"The Constitution asserts to be dedicated to life, liberty, and justice, and we are seeing this accomplished in the justice George Floyd continues to get," they stated. "This comes after hundreds of years of American history in which Black Americans sadly did not get equal justice."
The attorneys said they're"eager to see continuing justice in this historic case that will impact Black citizens and all Americans for generations to come."
"No police officer is above the law, nor should they be shielded from liability. We need urgent reforms today," Johnson said.
In addition to supposedly violating Floyd's rights, Chauvin is named a second, independent indictment filed Thursday for deprivation of rights under color of law for supposedly violating the civil rights of a 14-year-old at 2017. The indictment said"Chauvin, without legal justification, held" the teenager"by the throat and struck Juvenile 1 multiple times in the head with a flashlight." Chauvin is also accused of holding"his knee to the neck and the top trunk of Juvenile 1 even after Juvenile 1 was lying prone, handcuffed, and unresisting."
Chauvin was convicted last month on all state charges against him in Floyd's departure: second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
The 3 additional officers involved in Floyd's death are awaiting trial. After appearing in court Friday morning over the new national charges , all three were released on $25,000 bond.
