The federal indictment of four former Minneapolis police officers involved in the death of George Floyd is a “reminder” that there is “still more that needs to be done,” the White House said.
“We have seen the reports, and we have are watching any follow-up closely,” said press secretary Jen Psaki. “It’s a reminder, as was the verdict in the [Derek] Chauvin case just a few weeks ago, that there’s still more that needs to be done.”
She continued: “That was a moment of justice. Certainly, that is just the beginning. And it’s a reminder of the need to put police reform in place through our legislative process and put those reforms in place across the country.”
According to the indictment, Derek Chauvin, the officer who last month was convicted on murder charges in Floyd’s death, violated Floyd’s constitutional rights, depriving him of the right to be free from “unreasonable seizure, which includes the right to be free from the use of unreasonable force by a police officer.”
Former officers Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng, and Tou Thao were charged on their failure to stop Chauvin’s use of unreasonable force, according to the document.
The latest federal charges are separate from an investigation into Minneapolis policing practices announced last month by Attorney General Merrick Garland.
President Joe Biden last month urged lawmakers to have the “courage to act” on police reform.
“We have all seen the knee of injustice on the neck of Black Americans. Now is our opportunity to make some real progress,” Biden said in his first address to a joint session of Congress, adding that “the vast majority of men and women wearing the uniform and a badge … want to help meet this moment as well.”
He added: “We have to come together … to rebuild trust between law enforcement and the people they serve.”
Team Biden is backing passage by the Senate of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2020. That measure cleared the Democratic-run House by a 236-181 vote in June last year, a bill that would ban chokeholds, no-knock warrants in drug cases, and alter so-called qualified immunity for law enforcement.
Biden has said he hopes to see a bill in the Senate pass by May 25, the anniversary of Floyd’s death.
The White House has so far declined to say whether Biden will invite South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, a Republican, to the White House to discuss the efforts. Scott is leading bipartisan talks on the issue on Capitol Hill.
In remarks following Chauvin’s conviction, Vice President Kamala Harris also pressed for police reform, calling it “long overdue.”
“A measure of justice isn’t the same as equal justice. … We still must reform the system,” Harris said in remarks at the White House.
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Biden drew controversy earlier that day upon telling reporters that he had called Floyd’s family to offer prayers ahead of the verdict.
