Former MPD officer involved in Floyd’s death withdraws appeal in federal court

Former Minneapolis police officer J. Alexander Kueng has withdrawn a motion to appeal his federal conviction that found him guilty of violating George Floyd’s civil rights.

RELATED: Ex-officers Thao, Kueng appeal convictions in federal civil rights case

According to a motion filed in federal court on Thursday, Kueng “agrees that his best interests are not served by the appeal, and that he no longer seeks to pursue it.” A federal judge granted the withdrawal.

Kueng and former officer Tou Thao both filed appeals to their federal convictions in August. Kueng was sentenced to three-and-a-half years while Thao was sentenced to three years.

On Monday, right as Kueng’s state trial for his role in Floyd’s death was about to begin, Kueng’s attorney announced that he took a plea deal that saw him plead guilty to aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. The aiding and abetting second-degree murder charge against him was dropped.

RELATED: Kueng takes plea deal, Thao opts to have judge decide his fate in state trial

Thao opted to have a trial stipulated by evidence, meaning that Judge Peter Cahill will decide if he is guilty based on the evidence provided.

In September, federal prosecutors field an appeal to the sentences of both Kueng and Thao. They had initially sought a sentence that was less than the 21-year federal prison sentence given to former officer Derek Chauvin and more than the two-and-a-half year sentence handed to former officer Thomas Lane. As of Thursday night, that appeal still stands.

Lane pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter in a plea deal with the state. Judge Cahill sentenced him to three years in prison for the criminal charge, while a federal judge sentenced him to two-and-a-half years with two years of supervised release for his civil rights conviction.