Do you think Thomas Lane should be treated more leniently than the others?

Question

I’ve seen this post being copied around Reddit, and I am conflicted. There is some conflicting information on how new Lane was to the force, I believe he did graduate early last year but some are saying this was his 3rd day on the actual job.
I do think Lane could have done more, however if he had stopped Chauvin it’s likely he would have been fired, and Chauvin would remain free today. It wouldn’t even have made the news.
‘But he could have saved a life, that’s worth losing your job’ .. it’s easy to say that knowing what we now know, but if he DID do more and save that life, nobody would know if he had actually saved a life. His peers would tell him he overreacted, George Floyd was never in danger, he shouldn’t have questioned a superior officer..
So do you think Lane should have done more? Do you think he should get a lighter sentence than the other 2 cops? 
Thomas Lane is on the bottom left.

Accepted Answer

Almost like cops should have more training and be comfortable calling out things that don’t look right or seem ethical but instead don’t.

Answer

Yes, I believe he deserves leniency. He spoke up, but didn’t have the training or experience to know that his fellow officers were murdering someone, and he didn’t have the power in a toxic culture to stop them. I think he was a victim of the system as well; however, leniency doesn’t mean no consequences.  He should still be charged and tried.  If found guilty, circumstances should be considered at sentencing. 
I would draw a parallel to a more well-known situation where a partner of an abuser, a victim of domestic violence that feels powerless, ends up aiding and abetting the crimes of their abuser.  We can feel compassion for their victim status as well as hold them responsible for their actions.

Answer

the need to conform is actually so powerful for humans. we need to feel like we are part of a group, and the need to conform is definitely heightened when you are not confident and you’re in the same room as your superiors. 
my favourite study on conformity is Milgram’s electric shock experiment. it is awful the lengths people go to when they are in the presence of someone they consider to be more superior. i definitely recommend looking into the study if you haven’t. 
to me, this just screams yet another example of how incompetent police training is. new cops should have the confidence to speak up without the fear that they will be reprimanded by their superiors. 
unlike the electric shock experiment, someone actually died here. someone was actually murdered. i don’t think that should go unpunished.

Answer

You answered my question I asked about bad apples in a previous thread.  
What happens when the barrel holding the apples is poison to begin with?

Answer

Birds of a feather flock together right? 
If someone thought they were giving a group of friends a ride to someone house and that house gets robbed are they not an accessory even though their intentions were just to give a ride to their friends? 
He’s an accessory, and that’s what he’s getting charged for. 
Their oath is to uphold integrity. Regardless of what their probationary status is. The VERY LEAST he could have done was stand up. He coulda just stood up and made a call into the department. Pretty sure that’s within his probationary rights or whatever. But instead he stayed kneeling on a suffocating man.

Answer

Absolutely he does. He spoke up. He didn’t want to cause George Floyd harm. He actively tried to question what they were doing.  He was shot down as the rookie, and dismissed. I see this a lot in patient care in the fire service. It isn’t anything exclusive to the police force. People constantly get dismissed based on their experience and it’s a problem. He certainly doesn’t deserve to be charged in the same way as Thao, who repeatedly dismissed bystanders, including a firefighter with the line “if he’s talking he’s breathing”. While I use that line myself, regularly, it is never said without actually assessing someone. Yes, he was trained to do differently and but in any emergency field it’s a common saying “this isn’t how we do it in the field”. You’ll learn how it’s done when you get out there. A lot of time that’s great advice, but it leaves such a terrible opening for situations like this that silence rookies.

Answer

There were like 2 or 3 civilians there telling Chauvin to get off. George Floyd was saying clear as day that he couldn't breath. And the officers did nothing. Maybe Lane felt too intimidated to take action, and I'm very sorry if that was the case, but it doesn't make it right. If he is too mousey and unsure of himself, that he can't do something about an injustice occurring, then he had picked the wrong profession. There can't be any leniency.

Answer

Yes i feel he should have done more regardless how long he been employed at the job. Its about doing what's morally right... They all could have stopped what happen..i even seen a video were a black boy and a white girl tried to go help and the chinese looking man...(don't know his name) kept pushing them back...
Yes i feel they all should be charged just like if you and i were friends and one of our mutual friends commited a murder... All 3 of us would get charged...you and i would be charged just for being present..
First thing prosecutor would've said why didnt you try to help or stop it...

Answer

Idk I’m conflicted because I have to think about if I was new and being taught by my supervisor while still learning would I have spoken up? I honestly cannot answer that question so I do believe he deserves leniency.

Answer

No, I dont think he deserves leniency.

Do you think Thomas Lane should be treated more leniently than the others?

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