ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — A former Minneapolis police officer has completed a two-and-a-half year federal sentence for his role in the murder of George Floyd, but won't be tasting freedom for a few more months.
Thomas Lane is incarcerated at the Englewood Federal Prison facility in Littleton, Colorado. He just wrapped up his federal requirements after pleading guilty to depriving Floyd of his civil rights back in May of 2020.
Lane also pled guilty to state charges of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter in connection with Floyd's death under the knee of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. As part of the deal Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill sentenced Lane to three years behind bars, to be served concurrently with his federal charges.
Minnesota Department of Corrections (DOC) spokesperson Shannon Loehrke confirms for KARE 11 that Lane has completed the incarceration period of his federal sentence, and explains that DOC is contracting with the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to house Lane while he completes the incarceration period of his Minnesota sentence.
Lane will remain at the facility in Englewood and is currently scheduled to be released from his Minnesota sentence to supervision on Aug. 20, 2024.
His full sentence, including supervision, expires on Aug. 20, 2025.
Thomas Lane, along with fellow officers Tou Thao and J. Alexander Kueng, was convicted of violating Floyd's civil rights in a federal trial back in February by not intervening when Chauvin kneeled on Floyd's neck.
All three officers were charged with denying Floyd his right to medical care, while Kueng and Thao also faced charges for failing to intervene with Chauvin's use of force.
At his state trial in April 2021, Derek Chauvin was convicted of second-degree manslaughter, second-degree murder and third-degree murder for Floyd’s death on May 25, 2020, and was sentenced to 22.5 years.
Then in May 2022, the judge overseeing the federal civil rights cases of the four former Minneapolis police officers accepted the terms of Chauvin's plea agreement. Under the plea agreement both sides agreed Chauvin should face a sentence ranging from 20 to 25 years, with prosecutors saying they would seek 25. A federal judge eventually handed down a 21 year sentence.
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