Former Minneapolis police officer Tou Thao was sentenced to four years and nine months in prison Monday for his role in the death of George Floyd.
Thao, the last of the four officers involved to be sentenced in the case, said during a sentencing hearing that his “conscience is clear,” according to the Associated Press.
“I did not commit these crimes,” he said. “My conscience is clear. I will not be a Judas nor join a mob in self-preservation or betray my God.”
Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill told Thao that he was “hoping for a little more remorse,” handing down a sentence that was above the recommended four years, the Associated Press reported.
Thao was found guilty of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter in May. His sentence will be served concurrently with a 3 1/2-year sentence on federal civil rights charges.
Prosecutors argued that Thao “stood by and allowed” former police officer Derek Chauvin to restrain Floyd as he died on May 25, 2020, the AP reported.
“Thao’s actions were even more unreasonable in light of the fact that he was under a duty to intervene to stop the other officers’ excessive use of force and was trained to render medical aid,” Judge Cahill wrote upon finding Thao guilty.
Chauvin, who is currently serving a 22-year sentence, plans to appeal his state case to the U.S. Supreme Court. Former officers Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng have also pleaded guilty to state manslaughter charges and were found guilty of federal civil rights charges.
