Daunte Wright: who was black man killed in Minneapolis police shooting as officer identified as Kim Potter

Both police officer Kim Potter, who shot Wright, and police chief Tim Gannon have resigned from their posts.
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A 20-year-old black man, Daunte Wright, was shot fatally by officer Kim Potter in Minneapolis on April 11 as the George Floyd trial continues in the same city.

Protesters have taken to the streets of Brooklyn Center, just north of Minneapolis, for several days, defying a city-wide curfew to demand justice for Wright.

What happened in the shooting?

Demonstrators chant around a chalk circle that says Justice for Daunte Wright on April 11, 2021 in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. Protesters took to the streets after 20 year old Daunte Wright was shot and killed during a traffic stop by members of the Brooklyn Center police.Demonstrators chant around a chalk circle that says Justice for Daunte Wright on April 11, 2021 in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. Protesters took to the streets after 20 year old Daunte Wright was shot and killed during a traffic stop by members of the Brooklyn Center police.
Demonstrators chant around a chalk circle that says Justice for Daunte Wright on April 11, 2021 in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. Protesters took to the streets after 20 year old Daunte Wright was shot and killed during a traffic stop by members of the Brooklyn Center police.
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The Brooklyn Center Police Department said in a statement that officers had pulled a man over on the evening of Sunday, April 11 for a traffic violation.

After stopping him, they determined he had an outstanding arrest warrant. Police say the man attempted to re-enter his vehicle after they tried to arrest him.

An officer, Kim Potter, shot the driver, who continued moving in the car for several blocks before crashing into another vehicle and subsequently being pronounced dead at the scene by medics.

Daunte Wright’s mother, Katie, said her son had called her while the incident was ongoing. He told her he had been pulled over by police because of the "air fresheners hanging from his rear-view mirror".

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She then heard some kind of scuffle before the line went dead.

"A minute later, I called and his girlfriend answered, who was the passenger in the car, and said that he'd been shot... and my son was laying there lifeless”, she told local Minneapolis newspaper, the StarTribune.

She added that her son’s body had been left on the floor by police officers, saying:

"Nobody will tell us anything. Nobody will talk to us... I said please take my son off the ground”.

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She told local media she heard someone on the phone saying: “Daunte, don’t run” before the line went dead.

Police Chief Tim Gannon of the Brooklyn Center Police Department said in a conference on the morning of Monday, April 12, that the shooting was an “accident”, with Potter, who has worked for the department for 26 years, intending to draw her taser, not her gun in the incident.

In the news conference, Gannon played a short video from the body camera worn by Potter in which an officer can be heard saying “taser, taser, taser” as Mr Wright attempts to get back in his car.

Standard procedure would be to use the stun gun, but instead a normal gun is fired. In the video, the same officer can be heard saying “I just shot him”.

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"It is my belief the officer meant to deploy their Taser but shot him with a single bullet," Chief Gannon said, adding: "There's nothing I can say to lessen the pain."

Chief Gannon and Kim Potter have subsequently resigned from their posts.

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Where are protests taking place?

As soon as news broke of the shooting, hundreds of protesters began to gather outside the police headquarters in Brooklyn Center.

They lit candles and wrote on the pavement in chalk, with most protesters demonstrating peacefully - though some attacked police cars, Reuters reported.

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Protests have continued for several days in spite of a curfew by Mayor Mike Elliott earlier in the week, sparking clashes between protesters and police.

What’s happened to Kim Potter?

On the evening of Wednesday, April 14, Kim Potter was taken into custody and booked into Hennepin County Jail before bail was posted.

She was taken into custody on probable cause of second-degree manslaughter. In Minnesota state law, a person can be found guilty of this offence if they’re proven to have shown culpable negligence, creating an unreasonable risk and consciously taking “chances of causing death or great bodily harm” to another person.

Second degree manslaughter carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $20,000 (£14,500) fine. Potter is due to appear in court for the first time on Thursday, April 15.

Why are tensions high in Minnesota?

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The killing of Wright is reminiscent of the death of George Floyd, also African-American, during the summer of 2020, which occurred in Minnesota.

Floyd died following his arrest by police officer Derek Chauvin. Chauvin used a neck restraint on Floyd, who repeatedly said he couldn’t breathe while being held down.

Currently, the trial of Derek Chauvin, accused in connection with Floyd’s death, is taking place in Minnesota.

The outcome of the trial is being seen as a pivotal moment in US race relations.

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