Officer In Floyd Killing Says His Role Was Crowd Control

FILE – This combination of photos provided by the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office in Minnesota on June 3, 2020, shows, from left, former Minneapolis police officers J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao. The former policer officers are on trial in federal court accused of violating Floyd’s civil rights as fellow Officer Derek Chauvin killed him. Judge Paul Magnuson abruptly recessed on Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2022 after one of the defendants tested positive for COVID-19. (Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office via AP, File)

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — A former Minneapolis police officer charged in George Floyd’s killing is scheduled to resume testifying Wednesday, after telling the court that his role was to control traffic and onlookers.

Tou Thao testified Tuesday that he was relying on his fellow officers to care for Floyd’s medical needs. Thao is one of three former officers charged in federal court with violating Floyd’s constitutional rights when Officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for 9 1/2 minutes as the 46-year-old Black man was handcuffed, facedown on the street.

A prosecutor noted video shows Thao looking at the other officers much of the time and suggested that the bystanders and traffic were not big threats.