State Trial Moved To June For 3 Fmr. MPD Officers Charged In George Floyd's Death

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The state trial for three former Minneapolis police officers charged in George Floyd's death will begin months later than originally scheduled.

On Wednesday, the Hennepin County Court ruled that the joint trial will now start on June 13. All parties previously motioned for a continuance, filed on the grounds that continuance would "be in the interests of justice."

The decision comes as Tou Thao, Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng also face a federal trial for depriving Floyd of his civil rights, which is set to begin Thursday.

In the state trial, Thao, Lane and Kueng are charged with aiding and abetting Derek Chauvin, another former Minneapolis officer, in the May 25, 2020, death of George Floyd. Last April, Chauvin was convicted of second-degree murder for fatally kneeling on Floyd's neck outside a south Minneapolis convenience store, even though Floyd repeatedly told the officer he couldn't breathe. That trial was live-streamed.

Chauvin is currently serving a 22-and-a-half year sentence for murdering Floyd. He also pleaded guilty to federal civil rights charges in the case.

Last week, the Hennepin County judge denied a motion from the three other former police officers to limit live-streaming of the trial.