Kim Potter Sentenced to 24 Months in Killing of Daunte Wright
Former Minnesota police officer Kim Potter received a sentence of 24 months after she was convicted of first- and second-degree manslaughter in the fatal shooting of Daunte Wright. On Friday, Judge Regina Chu handed…
Former Minnesota police officer Kim Potter received a sentence of 24 months after she was convicted of first- and second-degree manslaughter in the fatal shooting of Daunte Wright.
On Friday, Judge Regina Chu handed down the sentence. Two-thirds of the sentence, or 16 months, is to be served in prison, while the other will be served on disciplinary release “assuming no disciplinary offenses or conditional release violations.”
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Potter was charged with first- and second-degree manslaughter in the fatal shooting of Wright, a Black man, in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, in April 2021.
And in December, she was convicted on both charges.
As USA Today notes, “The first-degree manslaughter charge carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison and/or a $30,000 fine. The second-degree charge has a maximum sentence of 10 years and/or a $20,000 fine.”
On Friday, Chu addressed the fact that the sentence was a “significant downward departure.”
She said it “does not in any way diminish Daunte Wright’s life. His life mattered.”
However, she added, “To those who disagree and feel a longer prison sentence is appropriate, as difficult as it may be, please try to empathize with Ms. Potter’s situation.”
She went on to quote former President Barack Obama