One of four fired Minneapolis police officers accused in the death of George Floyd posted bail and left jail Wednesday afternoon, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
Thomas Lane, 37, was released from Hennepin County jail just after 4 p.m., a spokesman for the sheriff’s office said. He had been held in lieu a $750,000 bail.
The other three former officers — Derek Chauvin, Alexander Kueng, and Tuo Thao — were still behind bars late Wednesday afternoon, the paper said.
Lane’s attorney, Earl Gray, said Lane accepted bail with conditions, which included relinquishing any guns in his possession. He is currently with his wife at an undisclosed location, Gray said.
“Now we can watch what happens next from outside,” said Gray, who said he intended to file a motion to dismiss charges against Lane. His next hearing is June 29.
Lane, on his fourth full time shift, was the officer who initially took Floyd into custody on May 25 after a food store said he gave them a counterfeit $20 bill. He was seen in video of Floyd’s arrest holding down his legs, while Kueng held down his back, and Chauvin — the training officer for rookies Lane and Kueng — pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes while the 46-year-old man repeatedly called out that he couldn’t breath, as CrimeOnline previously reported. Thao appeared to stand watch during the incident.
Lane, Kueng, and Thao have been charged with aiding and abetting second degree murder and aiding and abetting second degree manslaughter. Chauvin has been charged with second degree murder and second degree manslaughter. His bail has been set at $1.25 million.
Floyd’s death prompted ongoing protests against excessive use of force by police across the country, particularly against African Americans.
See more reporting on this story from CrimeOnline.
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[Featured image: Thomas Lane/Hennepin County Jail]
