Cop Who Killed Daunte Wright Gets Hit With Additional Manslaughter Charge

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Daunte Wright, Kim Potter
The officer who shot and killed Daunte Wright is being hit with an additional manslaughter charge.

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison is adding an additional first-degree manslaughter charge against former Brooklyn Center police officer Kim Potter for the killing of 20-year-old Daunte Wright. Potter shot and killed Wright during a traffic stop and later claimed that she intended to use her taser but mistakenly drew her pistol.

"After conducting that review — which included consulting with an expert in police use of force — Attorney General Ellison confirmed that the original second-degree manslaughter charge is appropriate, but also concluded that an upgraded charge of first-degree manslaughter is warranted," read a statement from the Attorney General Ellison.

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In a video from the incident, Potter can be heard shouting "Taser!" before she fires, followed by: "Holy shit, I just shot him. I grabbed the wrong fucking gun."

Potter faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison for the first-degree manslaughter charge. Second-degree manslaughter can result in up to 10 years in prison.

Wright was pulled over for driving with expired tags and having an air freshener hanging from the rearview mirror, which is prohibited in Minnesota. He had an outstanding warrant for a gross misdemeanor weapons violation.

"It's disappointing to have her dragged through a political storm by Mr. Ellison, like he has with these police officers," defense attorney, Earl Gray said of Ellison's ruling.

[Via]


About The Author
Cole Blake is currently an Editor at HotNewHipHop based out of Brooklyn, New York. He began working at the site as an intern back in 2018 while studying journalism at St. John’s University. In the time since, he’s graduated with a bachelor's degree and written extensively about a wide range of topics including pop culture, film & television, politics, video games, sports, and much more. He’s also covered music festivals such as Gov. Ball and Rolling Loud. You can find him publishing work for HNHH from Monday to Wednesday or on weekends. On the sports front, Cole’s a passionate NBA and NFL fan with his favorite teams being the Indianapolis Colts and Los Angeles Lakers. He also roots for the Yankees whenever he finds himself at Yankee Stadium or the Red Storm when in the company of other SJU alumni. His favorite hip-hop artists are billy woods, Earl Sweatshirt, Cam’ron, MIKE, and Mach-Hommy.
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