June 3 George Floyd protest news

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey issued a statement this afternoon regarding charging decisions on the four police former officers involved in George Frey’s death.

Earlier today: Three former Minneapolis police officers on the scene when George Floyd was killed have been charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced today.

Additionally, Ellison announced he's upgrading the charge against Derek Chauvin, the officer who had his knee pressed into Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes, to second-degree murder.

Former President Jimmy Carter became the latest — and final — living former president to weigh in on the death of George Floyd, who was killed while in police custody last week.

Carter went on to say that he feels he has "a responsibility to bring equity to my state and our country."

The former president referenced remarks he made in 1971 during his inaugural address as Georgia's governor.

"The time for racial discrimination is over," he said at the time.

"With great sorrow and disappointment, I repeat those words today, nearly five decades later. Dehumanizing people debases us all; humanity is beautifully and almost infinitely diverse. The bonds of our common humanity must overcome the divisiveness of our fears and prejudices," Carter said in his statement today.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison says the elevated murder charge for former officer Derek Chauvin and new charges for three other former officers were not influenced by the public outcry in the George Floyd case, nor the fact that a public memorial is scheduled for Thursday.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison warned the Minneapolis community Wednesday that while all four officers involved in the death of George Floyd were charged, bringing a case against police is always challenging.

Ellison noted that his partner in the prosecution, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman, is the only Minnesota prosecutor who has ever successfully prosecuted a police officer for murder.

“We’re confident in what we’re doing, but history does show that there are clear challenges here,” Ellison said.

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One of the three former Minneapolis police officers who are charged with aiding and abetting murder in the death of George Floyd has been taken into custody, said Drew Evans, the superintendent of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.

Officials are in the process of taking the other two into custody, and Evans said he expects them to be in custody later this afternoon.

He did not say which of the three officers was in custody, but Hennepin County Sheriff's website records show J. Alexander Kueng is in custody.

The site offers no other information or details.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said the new charges filed against all four officers involved in the death of George Floyd are "justified by the facts and the law."

Asked about the possible impact of the charges on people across the country, Ellison responded, "The pursuit of justice is always good and right. And I want to signal to them that we hope that they continue to raise the cause of justice but do it in a peaceful manner. It is their right to express themselves. And with that I will say they should continue in their own communities to get together, to build a just police-community relationship. We need the faith community to be involved. We need arts and entertainment to inspire us towards justice. We need everybody. There is a lot more to do than just this case and we ask people to do that."

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After he formally announced charges against all four officers, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison acknowledged that a "successful prosecution" could not rectify the "hurt and loss" so many people feel following George Floyd's death.

Ellison added that the path to "constructing justice and fairness in our society" would be "slow and difficult work."

"That work is the work of all of us. We don't need to wait for the resolution and investigation of this case to start that work. We need citizens, neighbors, leaders in government and in faith communities, civil and human rights activists, to begin rewriting the rules for a just society now," Ellison said.

The attorney general added that new policy and legislation is needed on the municipal, state and federal level. He encouraged individuals in the arts and entertainment industry to use their cultural influence to "inspire the change we need."

"There is a role for all who dream of a justice that we haven't yet experienced," Ellison said.

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Three former Minneapolis police officers on the scene when George Floyd was killed have been charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced today.

"I strongly believe that these developments are in the interests of justice for George Floyd, his family, our community and our state," Ellison said.

Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng helped restrain Floyd during the May 25 incident, while officer Tou Thao stood near the others.

Arrest warrants have been issued for the three former officers, Ellison said.

Additionally, Ellison announced he's upgrading the charge against Derek Chauvin, the officer who had his knee pressed into Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes, to second-degree murder.

Previously, Chauvin was charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. Two autopsies of Floyd determined that Floyd died by homicide.

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The former police officer who had his knee pressed into George Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes is now facing a second-degree murder charge.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison formally announced the new charge today during a news conference.

Previously, Derek Chauvin, who was fired from the Minneapolis Police force after Floyd's death, was charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.