Kim Potter, who fatally shot 20-year-old unarmed Black man Daunte Wright back in April of 2021, has been sentenced to 24 months in prison, Complex reports.
The 49-year-old was convicted of first and second-degree manslaughter back in December of last year and will serve 16 months behind bars – the last eight months of her sentence will be served on a supervised release.
Potter has also been hit with a fine of $1,000, and following the decision, Judge Regina Chu admitted what the former police officer had been hit with was a “significant downward departure” from standard guidelines. “This is one of the saddest cases I have had in my 20 years on the bench,” she said. “Officer Potter made a mistake that ended tragically, but she never intended to hurt anyone.”
Less than a week ago, the Minnesota Attorney General’s office filed a motion requesting that Potter receive a minimum of seven years in jail. It’s been noted that the maximum sentence for first-degree manslaughter is 15 years and a $30,000 fine, while second-degree manslaughter’s max is 10 years and a $20,000 fee; Potter plead not guilty to both of these charges.
Daunte’s mother, Katie Wright gave a statement leading up to the sentencing, saying, “I’ll never be able to forgive you for what you’ve stolen from us. She referred to Daunte over and over again as the driver, as if killing him wasn’t enough to dehumanize him.”
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“She never once said his name, and for that, I’ll never be able to forgive you. A police officer who was supposed to serve and protect someone took so much from us. She took our baby boy with a single gunshot through his heart, and she shattered mine. My life and my world will never, ever be the same.”
Wright family lawyer, renowned attorney Ben Crump, has said that Judge Chu’s comments during sentencing “showed a clear absence of compassion for the victim in this tragedy and were devastating to the family.”
Following news of Kim Potter’s allotted time in prison, Katie spoke to the media once again, saying that the short sentence felt as though the justice system had “murdered [Daunte] all over again” – check it out below.
[Via]