(Photo credit: CNN)
Former Brooklyn Center police officer, Kim Potter, has been found guilty of first- and second-degree manslaughter in the killing of 20-year-old Daunte Wright.
On April 11th, 2021, Potter, an officer for 26 years, killed Wright during a traffic stop in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, approximately ten miles north of Minneapolis, when attempting to make an arrest along with two other officers. Body cameras heard her yell “taser,” intending to use it, but she pulled her gun instead and shot him in the chest.
Both the defense and prosecution agreed that the killing was an accident. Potter’s defense team argued that “a mistake is not a crime,” but the prosecution contended that she should have known the difference between holding a taser and a gun.
Potter is scheduled to be sentenced on Friday, February 18th, 2022, and will be held in custody. She faces a maximum of 15 years and/or a $30,000 fine. However, Minnesota state law’s recommended sentence is between 6-8.5 years for first-time offenders.