Ex-officer Faces More Serious Charge in Daunte Wright’s Death

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota prosecutors have filed a more serious charge against the former suburban Minneapolis police officer who fatally shot Black motorist Daunte Wright during a traffic stop, but it is not the murder charge that activists were seeking.

Former Brooklyn Center officer Kim Potter is now charged with first-degree manslaughter, in addition to a prior charge of second-degree manslaughter. Activists had demanded a murder charge, protesting outside a local prosecutor’s home before Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison took over the case. After a review, Ellison determined a first-degree manslaughter charge was warranted.

Potter, who is white, fatally shot Wright on April 11. She has claimed she meant to use her Taser instead of her gun.