First of 4 Minneapolis Police Officers Convicted in Killing of George Floyd Released From Prison

Mar. 15, 2025

Thomas Lane.Photo: Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office

Thomas Lane, the first of four Minneapolis, Minn., police officers who were convicted for their roles in the killing ofGeorge Floyd, has been released from prison, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Lane, 41, was released from federal prison on Tuesday, Aug. 20, according toonline federal inmate records. A spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Prisons also confirmed Lane’s release to PEOPLE on Wednesday, Aug. 21.

Lane and two other ex-officers  —Tou Thao and J. Alexander Kueng— watched as 46-year-old Floyd struggled to breathe andrepeatedly indicated his distress. Viral video of Floyd’s killing sparked the nation’s largest civil rights protests in decades and led to increased awareness about police brutality and racial injustice in the U.S.

George Floyd mural.Stephanie Keith/Getty

Stephanie Keith/Getty

Lane was sentenced to 2.5 years in federal prison in July 2022,PEOPLE previously reported. He was later sentenced to three years in state prison after pleading guilty to aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter,CNN reported. According to the outlet, which cites the Federal Bureau of Prisons, Lane served his time at the Englewood Federal Correctional Facility in Littleton, Colo., just outside Denver.

A spokesperson for the Minnesota Department of Corrections said in an email to PEOPLE on Wednesday, Aug. 21 that Lane’s federal and state sentences ran concurrently, adding that he completed his federal sentence earlier this year.

The spokesperson also confirmed that Lane was released on Tuesday, Aug. 20 from “the incarceration period of his Minnesota sentence” and must serve one year of supervised release.

“In Minnesota, you serve 2/3 of your time incarcerated and the rest of the time on supervised release,” the spokesperson wrote. “His approved release plan transfers supervision to the Wisconsin Department of Corrections through an interstate agreement. The expiration of Lane’s sentence is 8/20/2025.”

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In June 2021, Chauvinwas sentenced to 22.5 years in state prison— or 270 months afterbeing convictedof state charges of murder and manslaughter in connection with Floyd’s killing. He alsopleaded guiltyto a federal charge of violating Floyd’s civil rights andwas sentenced to 21 years behind bars. His sentences are running concurrently.

Derek Chauvin.Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office via Getty

Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office via Getty

In November 2023, Chauvin survived a stabbing at the hands of another inmate while being held in an Arizona federal prison,PEOPLE previously reported. He was transferred on Tuesday to a federal prison in Texas, theAssociated Pressreported, citing federal prison officials.

As for Thao and Kueng, they wereordered in July 2022to serve 42 months and 36 months in federal prison, respectively, the United States Department of Justicepreviously said. They, like Lane, were convicted of violating Floyd’s civil rights.

source: people.com