Former Police Officer Who Kneeled On George Floyd’s Back J. Alexander Kueng Sentenced To 3.5 Years

The former police officer who kneeled on George Floyd‘s back, J. Alexander Kueng, was sentenced to three-and-a-half-years in prison on Dec. 9, according to CBS News. Kueng pled guilty to one count of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter back in October.

Floyd was murdered on May 25, 2020 in Minneapolis after ex-police officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on his neck for nine-and-a-half minutes. Video taken by a bystander captured Chauvin refusing to let up as Floyd repeatedly said he could not breathe, even as Floyd’s body went limp. The graphic video resulted in global protests.

Kueng kneeled on Floyd’s back as two other ex-police officers, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao, held Floyd’s legs or stopped concerned bystanders from helping Floyd. The four men were fired and charged with both state and federal charges. Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter for killing Floyd and sentenced to 22.5 years in prison. He was also sentenced to 21 years in federal prison for violating Floyd’s civil rights.

Kueng, Lane and Thao were each convicted in February in a federal court of depriving Floyd of his right to receive medical care. Thao and Kueng were also convicted of failing to intervene when Chauvin was killing Floyd. Lane received a two-and-a-half-year federal sentence and a three-year sentence from the state, which he is serving concurrently as part of a plea deal. Chauvin is also serving his sentences concurrently.

Kueng received a three-year federal sentence in addition to his three-and-a-half-year state sentence. Thao received a three-and-a-half-year federal sentence but agreed to a stipulated evidence trial for the state charges of aiding and abetting manslaughter. He is awaiting a verdict from Judge Peter Cahill.

The attorneys for the Floyd family Ben Crump, Antonio Romanucci and Jeff Storms released a statement following the sentencing. “The sentencing of Alexander Kueng for his role in the murder of George Floyd delivers yet another piece of justice for the Floyd family,” read the statement.

“While the family faces yet another holiday season without George, we hope that moments like these continue to bring them a measure of peace, knowing that George’s death was not in vain.”

Prosecutor Matthew Frank said he appreciated Kueng pleading guilty, as it avoids another long, painful trial.

“We appreciate very much that Mr. Kueng plead guilty,” said Frank. “We hope the conclusion of this case reaffirms that peace officers cannot treat citizens in crisis as non-people, or second-class citizens.”