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Taser, gun are focus of testimony in Potter trial

By:   ['Deena Winter', 'More From Author', '- December'], Minnesota Reformer
Date: 2021-12-13 00:00:00

Testimony in the manslaughter trial of Kimberly Potter on Monday centered on the differences between the former police officer’s Glock firearm and Taser.

Potter has said she thought she was firing her Taser when she fatally shot Daunte Wright during an April 11 traffic stop in Brooklyn Center, sparking protests.

Wright was on his way to a car wash with his girlfriend when he was pulled over by Brooklyn Center police trainee Anthony Luckey — who was being supervised by Potter — when he noticed Wright’s blinker signaling a right turn even though he was in the left turning lane. Luckey said he also noticed an air freshener hanging from the rearview mirror — which is technically illegal — and that the car’s registration tab was expired.

Potter is charged with first- and second-degree manslaughter in connection with the shooting of the 20-year-old Black man as he tried to avoid arrest.

Special Agent Brent Petersen of the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension testified Monday that while reviewing video footage of the incident, he noticed Potter unsnap her gun holster as she and two other officers approached Wright’s car to arrest him. He said that’s commonly done so an officer can move quickly if they need to use their gun.

Prosecutor Joshua Larson attempted to show jurors Potter’s holster, but was barred from doing so by Hennepin County District Judge Regina Chu.

BCA Agent Sam McGinnis testified about the difference in size, shape and operation of Tasers and firearms. The Taser Potter used that day is about twice as heavy as her firearm and has a bigger body and shorter, wider grip with less texturing on the surface. The Taser is mostly bright yellow, with a screen showing the battery level and lasers and an external “off” switch. McGinnis stood in the witness box and activated a Taser to show jurors the red and green lasers.

He also testified that although Brooklyn Center police officers are required to do a functioning or “spark test” with Tasers before each shift, Potter did not do so four out of her last 10 shifts, according to data retrieved from her Taser.

Larson tried to allow jurors to handle the Taser and weapon to see the difference, but was blocked by the judge, who said jurors will be able to see them during deliberations.

During cross-examination, Potter’s attorney said the department had just obtained the Taser 7 model in March, and Potter was the only one using it at that point, and hadn’t deployed it until that fatal day.

Prosecutors filed a motion Monday seeking to bar the defense from eliciting testimony from law enforcement officers about whether Potter was justified in using deadly force — as her former supervisor testified Friday — arguing it’s not allowed under the law.

Prosecutors also filed a motion seeking to elicit testimony about union membership to establish possible bias in various law enforcement witnesses. Potter was president of her police union on the day she shot Wright, and several of the witnesses are current or former Brooklyn Center Police Department employees and members of the same union.

Judge Chu said she will review the motions and perhaps discuss them Tuesday.

The county medical examiner said Wright died of a single gunshot wound to his chest. The bullet hit his heart and lungs before lodging just under the skin on the other side of his chest.

Dr. Lorren Jackson, assistant medical examiner in the Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office, testified that Wright lost about half the blood in his body, three liters, in what he did not think was a survivable injury. He said it normally would take seconds to minutes for someone to die, and Wright could have been alive up to a minute after getting shot.

Jackson also said marijuana was found in Wright’s blood, a point the defense zeroed in on, with Potter’s attorney Paul Engh at one point mentioning a digital scale was found in the car’s console.

Wright’s mother, Katie Bryant, did not attend the trial during the morning portion where numerous autopsy photos were shown in the courtroom, but did attend after that. Asked for comment on the trial so far, she said, “I have no words.”
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[1] Url: https://minnesotareformer.com/2021/12/13/taser-gun-are-focus-of-testimony-in-potter-trial/
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