The commonly heard excuse, “I was just following orders,” is the defense Nazi commanders gave during the Nuremberg trials.
It is true that many of us as humans are wired to follow—especially if we feel it is out of servitude and a sense of nobility. Unfortunately, when a dominant personality comes along and leads the way toward injustice and cruelty, most followers are unable to stand up against their leader.
Most would agree that ex-officer Derek Chauvin should be convicted for the murder of George Floyd, being he was the one who forced his knee on Floyd’s neck, cutting the air off to his lungs. Despite Floyd’s desperate cries, “I can’t breathe!,” Chauvin appeared unalarmed.
However, when it comes to the three other officers on the scene, how should they be judged? All three have been charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder, as well as aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. Though Chauvin’s trial is set for March, the other three officers do not go on trial until late summer.
One of the three officers, Tou Thao, according to a CNN report, “had six complaints filed with internal affairs, one of which was still open.” For Thao, the charges make sense knowing he had a history of excessive force.
In J. Alexander Kueng’s case, however, this is the most complex. At 26, he was on just his third day as an official officer. Not only is he the youngest, most inexperienced officer who was on the scene, but even his own racially diverse background creates an interesting factor.
The main reason Kueng wanted to become a police officer was to “change the narrative between the officers and the black community,” his mother claimed in a New York Times report.
Kueng’s mother is white, and his father is from Nigeria. Although his mother was the minority in the family, she rarely talked about race, telling a New York Times reporter, “the Kuengs are a family of doers, not talkers.”
While that may sound nice on the surface, if she had encouraged vocalization about these matters, it is possible that Kueng might have spoken up and fought for Floyd. Though he is likely the most innocent one out of the three, he still must be held accountable so that other officers may see the importance of holding their superiors accountable as well.
As for Thomas Lane, his brother claimed in an interview on Court TV that Lane was trying to speak up to Chauvin.
On the body cam footage, Lane suggests, “roll him on his side?” going on to say, “I just worry about the delirium or whatever.”
In the culture of policing, this may seem like a challenge of authority and could have been taken offense, so perhaps Lane’s brother makes a good point. Yet, even still, the fact that Lane showed that he was somewhat concerned but did not make any other effort to challenge his superior proves that the culture of law enforcement must drastically change.
These charges may seem unfair for Lane, in particular, considering he is the one who performed CPR on Floyd. However, he is also the one who, despite being new to policing, was quick to point his gun at Floyd’s face while he was in the car, begging him, “please don’t shoot me.”
It may seem unfair that these other officers be convicted of aiding and abetting the second-degree murder that officer Chauvin is responsible for because of his actions. Sure, the other officers did not apply their knees to Floyd’s neck.
Yet, what is tragically unfair is the fact that Floyd (like so many others who were killed by law enforcement) is no longer with us. What is truly unfair is when officers and security guards allow a mob of scheming anarchists and domestic terrorists to storm our democracy’s capitol building. And they do so without treating them with the same brutality that they do when encountering a black man who tries to give a store a fake $20 bill.
Some may think these charges are unfair, but they are nothing compared to the injustices that individuals all over the country have suffered simply because of the color of their skin.
Perhaps the men facing these charges and the rest of the policing community will receive a wake-up call. Law enforcement is in desperate need of drastic change, not just policies that they may have on paper, but within the very conversations that officers have with one another, within the training and concerning the implications of police brutality.
Though the culture of policing prides itself on loyalty to each other and never questioning or challenging the ones in leadership or seniority, the officers who witnessed the murder of Floyd must be held responsible. Because if they are not, there will continue to be more injustices happening due to officers feeling no sense of urgency to stand up for Black lives.
Kueng, Lane and Thao may not have been the ones who murdered Floyd. But because they could have saved him and chose to simply follow orders, their suffering of the consequences, unfortunately, is necessary for change.
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia
