The four former police officers charged in connection with George Floyd's death are not likely to present a united front, it has been reported.
Senior officer Derek Chauvin - the 19-year police veteran who was recorded kneeling on Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes - was assisted in the May 25 arrest by junior officers Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng, along with training officer Tou Thao.
Per The New York Times, Lane and Kueng's lawyers said in court on Thursday that they are blaming Chauvin and Thao for Floyd's death.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said he believes Chauvin intentionally assaulted Floyd:Lane and Kueng are facing up to 40 years in prison and bail of at least $750,000.
Meanwhile, the lawyer for Thao, another former officer charged in the case, said his client had cooperated with investigators prior to Chauvin's arrest.
Chauvin currently faces the most serious charges of the four men: second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
The other three men have been charged with abetting murder, as well as aiding and abetting manslaughter.
Earl Gray, the lawyer representing Lane, 37, said Chauvin was training the new officers, and that it was his client's fourth day on the force.
"They're required to call him 'Sir,'" Gray told the court. "He has 20 years' experience. What is my client supposed to do but to follow what the training officer said? Is that aiding and abetting a crime?"
Tom Plunkett, the lawyer representing Kueng, 26, corroborated, telling the court:
"At multiple times, Mr. Kueng and Mr. Lane directed their attention to that 19-year veteran and said, 'You shouldn't do this.'"
The lawyer argued that Kueng, who is African American, and Lane, who is white, tried to stop Chauvin from kneeling Floyd's neck.
Eric Nelson, a lawyer for Chauvin, declined to comment on what the lawyers representing the other men have said.
"The events of this case are horrific. The tragedy that flows from those events continues to grow," Plunkett said. "I'm asking the court to set bail on the individual, on the person, and not on an institution that has lost its guidance."
Robert Paule, the lawyer representing Thao, 34, said his client, who is Hmong, met with federal agents after the incident and handed over his revolver.
Judge Paul R. Scoggin denied all of the lawyers' requests for reduced bail.
Per the Guardian, after reviewing the bodycam footage of Floyd's arrest, state charging documents allege that the now-former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin held his knee on Floyd’s neck for a total of nearly nine minutes.
It also states that Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd's neck for two minutes and 43 seconds after Floyd had become non-responsive.
This news comes as unrest continues to unfold across the US, as protests - some peaceful, some violent - are calling out the systemic injustices carried out against black people, not least seen by the recent deaths of Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor.
As well as a call for justice, these ongoing protests are also demanding an end to police brutality and the racism that is so deeply entrenched in America and the western world.
The message is simple: Black lives matter.
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