Kim Potter, the former Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, police officer charged in the shooting and killing of Daunte Wright, was released from jail on Wednesday after posting bond.
Potter, 48, left confinement after fronting a $100,000 bond on the same day she was charged with second-degree manslaughter, according to Hennepin County Jail records.
Wright, a 20-year-old black man, was shot during a traffic stop on Sunday. Potter, a white, 26-year veteran of the department who announced her resignation Tuesday, meant to fire her Taser but used her handgun instead, according to former Police Chief Tim Gannon, who resigned shortly after Potter.
Body camera footage showed the struggle between officers and Wright as he tried to flee in his car. Potter can be heard yelling, “Taser! Taser!” before striking him once with gunfire.
“Holy s—. I shot him,” Potter can be heard saying.
OFFICER WHO SHOT DAUNTE WRIGHT CHARGED WITH SECOND-DEGREE MANSLAUGHTER, COUNTY ATTORNEY SAYS
The Hennepin County medical examiner released its autopsy report Monday, which said Wright, who crashed into another car several blocks away, “died of a gunshot wound of the chest and manner of death is homicide.”
Potter tendered her resignation on Tuesday after rioters descended on the Minneapolis suburb, looted businesses, clashed with law enforcement, and defied citywide curfew orders.
Washington County Attorney Pete Orput confirmed the manslaughter charge on Wednesday, and Potter was subsequently arrested.
“Certain occupations carry an immense responsibility and none more so than a sworn police officer,” said Imran Ali, Washington County assistant criminal division chief, in a statement. “With that responsibility comes a great deal of discretion and accountability. We will vigorously prosecute this case and intend to prove that Officer Potter abrogated her responsibility to protect the public when she used her firearm rather than her taser. Her action caused the unlawful killing of Mr. Wright and she must be held accountable.”
Wright’s family attorney and co-counsel were pleased that the district attorney was “pursuing justice for Daunte,” but the legal team insisted the incident “was no accident.”
“While we appreciate that the district attorney is pursuing justice for Daunte, no conviction can give the Wright family their loved one back,” the attorneys wrote in a statement. “This was no accident. This was an intentional, deliberate, and unlawful use of force. Driving while Black continues to result in a death sentence. A 26-year veteran of the force knows the difference between a taser and a firearm. Kim Potter executed Daunte for what amounts to no more than a minor traffic infraction and a misdemeanor warrant.”
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More than 60 people were arrested Tuesday evening during demonstrations over Wright’s death. Authorities have claimed that bricks and cans were thrown at officers during the unrest.
The city has since extended its curfew, and it braces for another night of violence.
The scene of Wright’s death was less than 10 miles away from the trial of former Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin, who is accused of killing Georgia Floyd last summer. Chauvin has pleaded not guilty to charges of third-degree murder, second-degree murder, and manslaughter.
