Attorney Earl Gray has agreed to represent Thomas Lane, an officer charged with aiding and abetting in George Floyd’s killing. This week, Gray made his first attempt to defend his client on national television. He did so by appearing on CNN with Chris Cuomo.
During his appearance on CNN, he responded to critics who say that his client should have intervened during the arrest.
“All these people say why didn’t my client intercede… well, if the public is there and they’re so in an uproar about this, they didn’t intercede either,” Gray said.
“Don’t you think that’s asking a little much of civilians and a little too little of your client?” Cuomo asked.
"He did everything that he thought he was supposed to do," says the lawyer representing Thomas Lane, one of the former officers involved in George Floyd’s death. "He did more than that… He's a man of compassion. He's not a violent person." pic.twitter.com/fFbztgnxOz
— Cuomo Prime Time (@CuomoPrimeTime) June 9, 2020
“Absolutely, I’m not… I just brought that up,” Gray answered.
Gray went on to argue that Floyd was “under the influence of some kind of drug” at the time of his death. Furthermore, he argued that Floyd”didn’t suffer a strangulation or asphyxiation.” Gray also claimed that the officer’s knee was on his shoulder and not his neck.
This interview comes just hours after former former officer Derek Chauvin appeared in court for the first time. With his bail set at more than $1 million, he is facing second-degree murder and manslaughter charges.
