Hennepin County Sheriff's Office via Getty Images
The former Brooklyn Center police officer convicted of killing 20-year-old Black man Daunte Wright during a traffic stop has been released from prison.
Kim Potter was released from the Minnesota Correctional Facility at 5 a.m. Monday morning, ABC News reports. Potter reportedly served 16 months of her two-year prison sentence.
Furthermore, Potter will serve the remainder of her two-year sentence under supervised release in Wisconsin, as reported by USA Today.
The reason regarding her time of release was “out of an abundance of caution for the safety of Ms. Potter, DOC staff, and the security of the correctional facility,” according to Andy Skoogman, spokesperson for the Minnesota Department of Corrections.
Potter was convicted of first and second-degree manslaughter for the April 11, 2021, shooting. She had pleaded not guilty to both charges but was ultimately sentenced last year to 24 months in prison,
She was also fined $1,000, far below the prosecution’s initial request.
The outlet reports that the deadly shooting transpired after Wright was pulled over for an expired registration and hanging an air freshener on the rearview mirror.
Wright was pulled over for an expired registration tab and a hanging air freshener in the rearview mirror.
Potter subsequently learned that Wright had an outstanding warrant for a misdemeanor weapons charge before attempting to detain him, said former Brooklyn Center Police Chief Tim Gannon, who resigned after the incident.
Wright escaped the officers amidst a scuffle. However, he was shot by Potter. The officer claimed she meant to pull her stun gun but accidentally shot her firearm instead.
Potter took the stand in her defense and cried while testifying, as previously reported by The Shade Room. She adamantly stated that the shooting was a mistake.
“I remember a struggle with Officer [Anthony] Luckey and the driver at the door. The driver was trying to get back into the car … I went around Officer Luckey as they’re trying to get back in the door. They’re still struggling and I can see Officer Johnson and the drivers struggling over the gearshifts because I can see Johnson’s hand and then I can see his face,” Potter stated.
She continued: “[Sgt. Mychal Johnson] had a look of fear on his face — nothing I’d seen before. We’re trying to keep him from driving away. It just went chaotic. And then I remember yelling, ‘Taser, Taser, Taser,’ and nothing happened and then [Wright] told me I shot him.”
Potter initially faced up to 15 years for manslaughter in the first degree and ten years for manslaughter in the second, but ultimately received a sentence of two years in prison.
