Who was Daunte Wright and how did he die?
Footage of Officer Kim Potter collapsing on the ground after she fired the fatal shot, killing Daunte Wright had gone viral in December of 2021.
Daunte Wright was a young black man who was shot just ten miles from where George Floyd was killed in the summer of 2020.
Who is Daunte Wright?
Daunte Wright was killed by a Brooklyn Center police officer in Minnesota shortly before 2pm on April 11, 2021, during a routine traffic stop.
Wright was 20 years old at the time of his death and was a father to his 1-year-old son, Daunte Jr.
What happened to him?
In a news release, Brooklyn Center police said officers had pulled over a vehicle for a traffic violation shortly before 2pm on April 11.
Police said when they tried to arrest the driver, who they determined had an outstanding warrant, he got back in his vehicle.
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"One officer discharged their firearm, striking the driver," police said. "The vehicle traveled several blocks before striking into another vehicle."
Cops said the officer who fired the fatal shot intended to use a Taser, not a handgun.
Police Chief Tim Gannon described the shooting as an ";accidental discharge".
The driver, identified as Daunte Wright, died at the scene while his girlfriend - who was in the vehicle - also sustained non-life-threatening injuries from the crash, police said.
Wright’s mother, Katie Bryant, told a crowd he called her to say he had been pulled over by police because of an air freshener that was dangling from his rearview mirror.
She said she heard officers tell her son to put his phone down, and then one of the officers ended the call.
Soon after, her son's girlfriend told her he had been shot.
She told reporters, "All he did was have air fresheners in the car and they told him to get out of the car.
"He got out of the car and his girlfriend said they shot him.
"He got back in the car and drove away and crashed and now he was dead on the ground since 1.47.
"Nobody will tell us anything and nobody will talk to her.
"I asked them to please take my son off the ground — he’s been there since 1.47 this afternoon."
What did authorities say about the incident?
Police Officer Kimberly Potter was charged with manslaughter in the first degree for the fatal shooting of Daunte Wright.
She was found guilty on December 23, 2021.
On February 18, 2022, Potter was sentenced to two years behind bars after serving 58 days.
During the sentencing, Potter emotionally addressed Wright's family.
In April, Police said they were investigating Wright's death and in a press conference on April 12 they said Potter meant to pull out a Taser, not a handgun, calling the incident an "accidental discharge."
Potter resigned from the force two days after the shooting.
According to a statement from the Brooklyn Center Police Department, officers pulled over Wright for a traffic violation.
When they discovered he had an outstanding warrant, they tried to take him into custody.
When he got back into his car, Potter fired her gun at him, but she claims she meant to fire her taser.
Riots broke out in the city when the news of Wright's death became public and photos from the protest showed men stomping on the windshield of a police cruiser.
Police fired rubber bullets to try to disperse the protesters, according to the Star Tribune.
After about an hour, the police presence eased, and the crowd lit candles and wrote messages such as "Justice for Daunte Wright" in chalk on the street.
But clashes broke out again soon after as another group of several hundred protesters gathered outside the Brooklyn Center Police Headquarters and were met with teargas and flashbangs.
What does the newly released footage from the Kimberly Potter trial show?
Never before seen footage was shown on the first day of the Kimberly Wright trial on December 9.
The footage shows an allegedly distressed Kimberly Potter collapsing to the ground after she fatally shot and killed Daunte Wright.
In one video, Potter is heard saying, "Oh, s**t. I shot him. I grabbed the wrong f*****g gun."
In the second, newly revealed video, Potter appears to be hyperventilation as she said, "Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God."
Police Officer Anthony Luckey can be heard saying, "Just breathe," to which Potter responded, "I'm going to prison."
Luckey said, "No, you're not."
"Kim, that guy was trying to take off with me in the car!" her partner, Sgt. Mychal Johnson said.
Potter was training Luckey at the time of the shooting, and he testified in court that Wright did not have a weapon.
Wright's mother, Katie Bryant, testified that she was on a video call and claims she saw her lifeless son's body in the driver's seat.
Bryant said she was on the phone with her son when they lost connection and when she called back, the woman in the passenger's seat answered and yelled, "They shot him!" before turning the phone toward Wright.
"And my son was laying there," Bryant said. "He was unresponsive and he looked dead."
She arrived shortly after and said she saw her son was covered by a white sheet but recognized him because of his tennis shoes.
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"I wanted to comfort my baby," she said to the courtroom.
"I wanted to hold him. I wanted to protect him, because that's what mothers do."
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