Tag: Kim Potter

Minnesota AG’s office to prosecute case in Wright’s death

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MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced Friday that his office will lead the prosecution of a former suburban police officer who is charged with second-degree manslaughter in the death of Daunte Wright.

Former Brooklyn Center Officer Kim Potter, who is white, fatally shot Wright, a 20-year-old Black motorist, on April 11. The city’s police chief, who has since stepped down, had said he believed Potter meant to use her Taser instead of her handgun.

“Daunte Wright’s death was a tragedy. He should not have died on the day that he did. He should not have died the way that he did,” Ellison said in a statement. Continue reading.

Officer Kim Potter to be charged with manslaughter in Daunte Wright’s death

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Kim Potter, the former police officer who fatally shot Daunte Wright outside Minneapolis on Sunday, will be charged with second-degree manslaughter, Washington County Attorney Pete Orput told the Star Tribune Wednesday.

Why it matters: The shooting of the 20-year-old Black man in Brooklyn Center, Minn., just ten miles from where George Floyd was killed by a Minneapolis police officer last year, has reinvigorated Black Lives Matter protests and led to three consecutive nights of unrest.

Context: Second-degree manslaughter carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine, according to Minnesota law. Continue reading.

Officer Kim Potter resigns after fatally shooting Daunte Wright

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Kim Potter, identified as the officer who fatally shot Daunte Wright, a 20-year-old Black man, during a weekend traffic stop near Minneapolis, resigned from her position “effectively immediately,” Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliott said in a statement Tuesday.

Background: Potter had been with the Brooklyn Center Police Department for 26 years, per the Minnesota Department of Public Safety Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. She shot and killed Wright during a traffic stop just before 2 p.m. Sunday in Brooklyn Center, Minn.

  • Police said Monday that Potter had inadvertently pulled out her gun instead of a Taser during the traffic stop. She was placed on administrative leave on Monday. Continue reading.