Officers involved in the killing of George Floyd deflected blame onto Derek Chauvin as they appeared in court for the first time on Thursday, the same day as Floyd’s memorial.

J Alexander Kueng, Thomas K. Lane and Tou Thao appeared at Hennepin County District Court, and two of their attorneys said Chauvin dismissed them as they tried to de-escalate the situation, according to the Star Tribune.

“What is my client supposed to do but follow what the [senior] officer says?” Lane’s attorney, Earl Gray, said in court. “The strength of this case, your honor, in my opinion, is extremely weak.”

They are each charged with one count of aiding and abetting second-degree murder and aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. Chauvin faces charges of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter, as Blavity previously reported.

Documents state that Lane asked his colleagues if they should roll Floyd onto his side, twice, reports NBC.

"No, staying put where we got him," Chauvin said, according to the complaint.

"I am worried about excited delirium or whatever," Lane said.

"That's why we have him on his stomach," Chauvin replied.

Kueng’s attorney, Thomas Plunkett, said his client followed the lead of his superior. According to defense attorneys, he was only working his third shift ever as a full-time officer while Lane was on his fourth day at the time of the incident.

“At all times Mr. Kueng and Mr. Lane turned their attention to that 19-year veteran,” Plunkett said. “[Kueng] was trying — they were trying to communicate that this situation needs to change direction.”

Kueng said when he took Floyd’s pulse he “couldn’t find one” but that Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd’s neck for an additional two minutes. His attorney said he turned to the other officers and said “we can’t do this.”

Gray echoed the sentiments of Plunkett and questioned what his client was supposed to do in that situation. He also said there’s not enough evidence to convict Lane.

“What was [Lane] supposed to do … go up to Mr. Chauvin and grab him and throw him off?” Gray asked.

“I’m not claiming [Lane] was following orders,” Gray said after Thursday’s hearings. “I’m claiming he thought what he was doing was right because he asked the training officer [Chauvin], ‘Should we roll [Floyd] over?’ twice.”

Gray says Lane got into the ambulance Floyd was in and attempted CPR.

"He did everything he was supposed to do as a police officer," Gray said. "What was he supposed to do, let go of his feet and go grab Chauvin and shove him off?"

“We recognize the statements that this defendant made, but beyond that [he] did nothing but hold the victim down [and] started CPR too late,” Assistant Attorney General Matthew Frank said after Gray attempted to humanize Lane.

In contrast to charging documents that state Floyd was pulled out of the squad car by Chauvin, Gray said Floyd resisted arrest, “asserted himself” and “flew out” of the vehicle on his own.

According to court documents, Thao was more focused on the growing crowd, USA Today reports.

“[Thao] became concerned about a number of citizens who had gathered and were watching the officers subdue Mr. Floyd, and potential traffic concerns, and so the defendant stood between those citizens and the three officers restraining Mr. Floyd," court documents stated.

Eric Nelson, Chauvin’s attorney, did not comment on the deflection of blame by the other attorneys.

The three officers face bail of $1 million without conditions or $750,000 with conditions, including no firearms or law enforcement work and supervised release.

The mugshots of the 4 officers involved in the murder of George Floyd have been released. #BlackLivesMatter
pic.twitter.com/tAxLPCUvZC

— Pop Base (@PopBase) June 4, 2020

Defense attorneys requested that bail of $50,000 to $250,000 be set, but Frank said the charges were “very serious” and the officers were a flight risk.

In an argument for a lower bail for Thao, Robert Paule said his client is not a flight risk because he lives in the community and is married with children.

Plunkett also asked that a lower bail be set for Kueng, reports KARE 11.

"I'm asking you to set bail on a person and not on an institution that's lost its guidance," Plunkett said.

Lane, Kueng and Thao are scheduled to appear in court again on June 29 where oral arguments are expected to begin. All four former officers face up to 40 years in prison.

Hennepin-County-District-Court

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