Minneapolis, MN
Prosecutors seek prison for 3 ex-Minneapolis officers in George Floyd killing
MINNEAPOLIS — Federal prosecutors requested a choose Wednesday to condemn one of many 4 former Minneapolis law enforcement officials convicted of civil rights violations in George Floyd’s killing to as many as 6 1/2 years in jail however to impose considerably stiffer but unspecified sentences on two others.
They urged U.S. District Choose Paul Magnuson to comply with the nonbinding federal sentencing pointers for former Officer Thomas Lane and impose a penalty between 5 1/4 and 6 1/2 years on jail.
Prosecutors additionally stated former Officer J. Alexander Kueng deserves a “considerably increased” sentence than Lane’s, however lower than the 20 to 25 years Derek Chauvin is predicted to get. They usually stated they will search a “comparable” sentence to Kueng’s for former Officer Tou Thao.
Each Lane and Kueng helped restrain Floyd on the evening in Might 2020 when Chauvin, who’s white killed Floyd, a Black man, by kneeling on his neck for greater than 9 minutes regardless of Floyd’s fading pleas that he could not breathe. Thao helped maintain again a crowd of involved bystanders.
The killing sparked fast protests in Minneapolis that unfold across the U.S. and past in a reckoning over police brutality and discrimination towards folks of coloration.
Chauvin reached a plea settlement in December that requires a 20- to 25-year sentence. Prosecutors are in search of 25 years for him.
Thao, Kueng and Lane went to trial and have been convicted on associated federal civil rights fees in February. Lane is white, Kueng is African American and Thao is Asian American.
Prosecutors stated in a sentencing memo for Kueng that “a number of components weigh closely in favor of a prolonged jail sentence” for him.
They cited Kueng’s “abuse of state powers,” his “lack of acceptance of duty, together with his (at-times obstructive and unbelievable) trial testimony,” the necessity to deter different officers from standing by when colleagues abuse arrestees who aren’t resisting, and the necessity for consistency with different instances of officers accused of failing to intervene to guard an arrestee from abuse.
Prosecutors famous the way it was established at trial that Kueng “directed a useful firefighter away from Mr. Floyd and rebuffed Lane’s questions on whether or not Mr. Floyd ought to be rolled on his facet. He personally assessed that Mr. Floyd didn’t have a pulse, after which did nothing about it.”
They usually stated a few of Kueng’s testimony “instantly and clearly conflicted with different, irrefutable proof offered at trial” in ways in which amounted to perjury, significantly because it associated as to if Kueng knew that Floyd “had a critical medical want.”
The prosecutors indicated they’d lay out completely different causes for the same sentence for Thao in a separate memo that had not been filed as of Wednesday night.
In a sentencing memo for Lane, prosecutors stated a penalty inside the federal pointers vary could be applicable, however not much less because the protection is in search of. They stated Lane’s failure to offer assist that might have saved Floyd had “critical penalties” for Floyd and the broader group.
Attorneys for Lane and Thao haven’t filed their sentencing suggestions but. A submitting outlining what Kueng is in search of was not publicly obtainable Wednesday, however his lawyer filed one other doc Wednesday indicating he would search a sentence under the rule vary.
Magnuson has not set sentencing dates for the 4 former officers. The federal civil rights instances have been separate from the state homicide and manslaughter fees towards them.
Chauvin was convicted in state courtroom final yr of second-degree homicide and sentenced to 22 1/2 years. Lane accepted a plea settlement in Might to a state cost of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter and is awaiting sentencing on that depend.
Thao and Kueng, who turned down plea bargains earlier, are scheduled to go on trial Oct. 24 on state fees of aiding and abetting each second-degree homicide and second-degree manslaughter.
Minneapolis, MN
Art therapy helping with holiday stress
While the holidays can be stressful, there are beautiful ways to help ease that stress and bring families together. An art studio in south Minneapolis focuses on art therapy and brings people together for collaborative art projects that cater to a variety of people. Heart Space owner Maddie Johnson shared her creative ideas with Leah Beno on FOX 9. More information can be found here: https://www.heartspacetherapy.org/
Minneapolis, MN
North Minneapolis community mourns women killed in crash
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Minneapolis, MN
‘They’re in good hands': Balloon release honors north Minneapolis crash victims
Dozens wept and embraced before releasing scores of balloons Saturday over north Minneapolis to remember two community pillars who were killed in a fiery car crash.
The crowd gathered near 26th and Emerson avenues to remember Esther Jean Fulks, 53, and Rose Elaine Reece, 57. They died on Dec. 16 when Teniki Latrice Elise Steward, 38, allegedly drove through a red light and struck their vehicle. A teenager waiting at a nearby bus stop also was injured.
Fulks and Reese “gave their love and their hard work and dedication to the community. And as you can see, there’s people out here for them,” said Fulks’ daughter, D’Nia. “I’m going to miss my mom. That was my world, I was with her day in and day out. I was hoping to come home to my mom, and it didn’t happen.”
“It means a lot,” Fulks’ son, Joseph Loyd, said of the neighbors attending the balloon release. “It shows what they contributed to the community and how much they meant to people. Not just their own families, but they touched countless other families and helped people.”
Emmary Thomas places a candle at a bus stop during a balloon release Saturday for Esther Fulks and Rose Reece at 26th and Emerson avenues in north Minneapolis. Fulks and Reece died in a crash at the intersection on Dec. 16. (Ayrton Breckenridge/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
A memorial of flowers, balloons, candles and pictures on Saturday mark the spot near the site of the crash that killed Esther Fulks and Rose Reece in north Minneapolis. Fulks and Reece died Dec. 16. (Ayrton Breckenridge/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Drakarr Lobley hugs a supporter during Saturday’s balloon release for Esther Fulks and Rose Reece in north Minneapolis. Fulks and Reece died in a crash at the intersection on Dec. 16. Lobley is Reece’s son. (Ayrton Breckenridge/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Family and friends said Fulks and Reece were pillars of the community who treated strangers like family and brought love to those around them. Both had worked as navigators for the Minneapolis Cultural Wellness Center since 1998, helping residents with food, clothing, shelter and other resources.
“They reminded us daily of the transformative power of service, love and cultural connection,” Elder Atum Azzahir, the center’s executive director, said in a statement. “They were not just navigators: They were beacons of hope, guiding people toward brighter futures.”
At the crash scene Saturday, loved ones embraced as they shed tears and shared memories. Anthony Hamilton’s “I Can’t Let Go” played as passing motorists called out condolences and words of support. Caution tape strung from a traffic cone near the intersection fluttered in the wind.
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