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    Tuesday, April 23, 2024

    Prosecutors charge 3 more officers in George Floyd's death

    This combination of photos provided by the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office in Minnesota on Wednesday, June 3, 2020, shows Derek Chauvin, from left, J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao. Chauvin is charged with second-degree murder of George Floyd, a black man who died after being restrained by him and the other Minneapolis police officers on May 25. Kueng, Lane and Thao have been charged with aiding and abetting Chauvin. (Hennepin County Sheriff's Office via AP)

    MINNEAPOLIS — Prosecutors charged three more police officers Wednesday in the death of George Floyd and filed a new, tougher charge against the officer at the center of the case, delivering a victory to protesters who have filled the streets from coast to coast to fight police brutality and racial injustice.

    The most serious charge was filed against Derek Chauvin, who was caught on video pressing his knee to Floyd’s neck and now must defend himself against an accusation of second-degree murder. The three other officers at the scene were charged for the first time with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.

    All four were fired last week. If convicted, they could be sentenced to up to four decades in prison.

    Chauvin was initially charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. Those charges still stand.

    The new second-degree murder charge alleges that Chauvin caused Floyd’s death without intent while committing another felony, namely third-degree assault. It carries a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison, compared with a maximum of 25 years for third-degree murder.

    The other officers — Thomas Lane, J. Kueng and Tou Thao — face the same maximum penalties for aiding and abetting. All three men were in custody by Wednesday evening. Chauvin was arrested last week and is still being held.

    The multiple charges against each officer would offer a jury more options to find them guilty.

    The charges were sought by Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, who called the protests unleashed by the death “dramatic and necessary” and said Floyd “should be here and he is not.”

    “His life had value, and we will seek justice,” said Ellison, who cautioned that winning convictions would be hard and said that public pressure had no bearing on his decisions.

    Hundreds of protesters were in New York City's Washington Square Park when the charges were announced.

    “It’s not enough,” protester Jonathan Roldan said, insisting all four officers should have been charged from the start. “Right now, we’re still marching because it’s not enough that they got arrested. There needs to be systematic change.”

    Ben Crump, an attorney for Floyd’s family, called it “a bittersweet moment” and “a significant step forward on the road to justice.” Crump said Elison had told the family he would continue his investigation into Floyd’s death and upgrade the charge to first-degree murder if warranted.

    The move by prosecutors punctuated an unprecedented week in modern American history, in which largely peaceful protests took place in communities of all sizes but were rocked by bouts of violence, including deadly attacks on officers, rampant thefts and arson in some places. While protests continued Tuesday night, violence was far more limited, with curfews, additional law enforcement officers and efforts by protesters to contain lawlessness credited with preventing more widespread damage in New York and other cities.

    “Last night we took a step forward in moving out of this difficult period we’ve had the last few days and moving to a better time,” New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said.

    Nationwide, more than 9,000 have been arrested in connection with unrest.

    At least 12 deaths have been reported, though the circumstances in many cases are still being sorted out.

    Minnesota has opened a civil rights investigation into whether the Minneapolis Police Department has a pattern of discrimination against minorities.

    Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, speaking after the new charges were announced, said the state and nation need to “seize the moment” and use the wrenching events of the past week to confront the effects of racism, including unequal educational and economic opportunities.

    “I think this is probably our last shot, as a state and as a nation, to fix this systemic issue,” he said at a news conference.

    President Donald Trump has pushed the nation’s governors to take a hard line against the violence, saying Tuesday that “lowlifes and losers” were taking over New York’s streets.

    He again tweeted Wednesday: “LAW & ORDER!”

    Within hours, thousands of peaceful protesters were in the streets again in the nation’s capital, singing “Amazing Grace” as they knelt under the watch of law enforcement officers in riot gear. “We are not going anywhere!” they chanted.

    Protester Jade Jones, 30, said the demonstrations would continue despite the new charges.

    "That’s the least they could do,” said Jones, who had been attending Washington protests for days. “It’s not going to wipe away 400 years of pain.”

    “We are glad there are additional charges, but that doesn’t mean justice has been served," she said.

    More than 20,000 National Guard members have been called up in 29 states to deal with the violence.

    The protests have also taken root overseas amid growing global outrage over Floyd’s death, racial injustice and heavy-handed police tactics.

    In Greece, police fired tear gas after young people attacked them Wednesday outside the U.S. Embassy in Athens. Some 4,000 protesters had been peaceful until near the end of the demonstration, when some threw gasoline bombs and stones at police. No injuries or arrests were reported. Other protests were held Wednesday in London, Helsinki, Rotterdam and Bogota, among other cities.

    The anger over Floyd's death has spilled into an array of racial issues across the U.S.

    In Philadelphia, for example, a statue of former Mayor Frank Rizzo was removed by the city early Wednesday after repeatedly being targeted by vandals. Rizzo presided over a police force widely accused of racism and brutality in the 1970s.

    In Virginia, Gov. Ralph Northam was expected to announce plans Thursday for the removal of an iconic statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee from Richmond’s prominent Monument Avenue, a senior administration official told The Associated Press. The statue in the former Confederate capital has been the target of vandalism during the protests.

    Associated Press journalists across the U.S. contributed to this report.

    Protesters kneel in front of New York City Police Department officers before being arrested for violating curfew beside the iconic Plaza Hotel on 59th Street, Wednesday, June 3, 2020, in New York. Protests continued following the death of George Floyd, who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers on May 25. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
    A protester is arrested for violating curfew near the Plaza Hotel on Wednesday, June 3, 2020, in the Manhattan borough of New York. Protests continued following the death of George Floyd, who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers on May 25. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
    People march in protest against police brutality in Boston, Wednesday, June 3, 2020, following the death of George Floyd, who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers on Memorial Day. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
    Demonstrators gather at a rally to peacefully protest and demand an end to institutional racism and police brutality, Wednesday, June 3, 2020, in Portland, Maine. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
    Family attorney Ben Crump, left, escorts Quincy Mason, second from left, a son of George Floyd, Wednesday, June 3, 2020, in Minneapolis, as they and some Floyd family members visited a memorial where Floyd was arrested on May 25 and died while in police custody. Video shared online by a bystander showed a white officer kneeling on his neck during his arrest as he pleaded that he couldn't breathe. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)
    Alganesh Hadgu, center, is comforted as she breaks down tearfully during a visit to the public memorial Wednesday June 3, 2020, in Minneapolis, Minn., for George Floyd, at the spot where he died after an encounter with police. "We are from Eritrea," said Hadgu's daughter Suzie Hewitt. "We have a pretty large Eritrean community here, in Minneapolis, and it would be naive to think that the African American struggle isn't one of ours. Their pain is our pain." (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)
    Demonstrators protest the death of George Floyd as they gather Wednesday, June 3, 2020, on the East side of the U.S. Capitol in Washington. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers.(AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
    Demonstrators lie face down depicting George Floyd during his detention by police during a protest against police brutality on Boston Common, on Wednesday, June 3, 2020. Floyd, an African American, died on May 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed a knee into his neck for several minutes even after he stopped moving and pleading for air. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
    Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg, foreground left, and Sacramento Police Chief Daniel Hahn, foreground right, kneel with others for a moment of silence at a rally in honor of George Floyd, on Wednesday, June 3, 2020, in Sacramento, Calif. Hahn, Steinberg and other local officials, joined hundreds of demonstrators in a peaceful march to a nearby church. Floyd, an African American man, died on May 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed a knee into his neck for several minutes even after he stopped moving and pleading for air. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)
    A protester waves a banner emblazoned with the acronym BLM for Black Lives Matter, outside City Hall during a protest over the death of George Floyd, on Wednesday, June 3, 2020, in Batavia, Ill. Floyd, an African American, died on May 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed a knee into his neck for several minutes even after he stopped moving and pleading for air. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
    Demonstrators gather to protest the death of George Floyd, Wednesday, June 3, 2020, near the White House in Washington. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
    LGBTQ community members join Black Lives Matter protesters as they block an intersection laying on the street with their hands behind their backs in West Hollywood, Calif. on Wednesday, June 3, 2020, over the death of George Floyd. Floyd, a black man died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers on May 25. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel)
    People pass "Black Lives Matter" graffiti as they walk along Broadway in lower Manhattan, Tuesday, June 2, 2020, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
    New York City police officers follow a group of protesters past Radio City Music Hall during a march Wednesday, June 3, 2020, in the Manhattan borough of New York. Protests continued following the death of George Floyd, who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers May 25. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
    Demonstrators gather to protest the death of George Floyd, Wednesday, June 3, 2020, near the White House in Washington. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
    People attend a protest against police brutality on Boston Common, Wednesday, June 3, 2020, following the death of George Floyd, who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers on Memorial Day. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
    A member of the National Guard and the Alamo are seen behind a newly erected protective fence in San Antonio, Wednesday, June 3, 2020. The grounds are being protected with the fence and a curfew as a precautionary measure to minimize the possibility of civil disturbance and damage to sensitive structures as protests have broken out over the death of George Floyd. Demonstrators took to the streets across the United States again Wednesday to protest the death of Floyd, a black man who was killed in police custody in Minneapolis on May 25. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

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