Minnesota AG “Elevates” Murder Count Against Chauvin, Charges 3 Officers With Abetting Floyd’s Killing

In keeping with the wishes of both the George Floyd’s family and the expectations of the public, Minnesota’s attorney general has just charged the three other officers seen in the video of Floyd being killed while being taken into custody, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Minnesota AG Keith Ellison, a longtime hero of the Democratic left who was closely involved with Bernie Sanders’ campaign for president, has reportedly decided to elevate the charges against Derek Chauvin while also  adding charges of aiding and abetting murder against the other three officers at the scene.

Keith Ellison

The other officers at the scene included two white man and an Asian man, who will be charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder, while Chauvin’s charge is elevated from third-degree murder – a kinda-sorta murder charge that only exists in three states – to second degree murder, along with a manslaughter charge.

The other three officers at the scene — Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane — will also be charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder, according to the sources, who spoke on conditions of anonymity. Chauvin was arrested last Friday and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter.

The charges come just days after Minnesota’s Democratic Governor, Tom Walz, asked Ellison to take over the prosecution, which at the time was being led by  the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office, amid public outcry over what many saw as charges against Chauvin that were too lenient. A lawyer representing Floyd’s family has said the family would like to see Chauvin face 1st degree charges, which would indicate a premeditated killing.

Floyd’s killing, which occurred amid a string of other racially-tinged incidents, has set off the worst social unrest in the US in 50 years.