A VETERAN cop and police chief have both resigned over the killing of Daunte Wright as his parents said they “can’t accept” their son’s death was a “mistake”. Wright, 20, was killed by a Brooklyn Center police officer shortly before 2pm on Sunday during a routine traffic stop. The young black man was shot just ten miles […]
A VETERAN cop and police chief have both resigned over the killing of Daunte Wright as his parents said they “can’t accept” their son’s death was a “mistake”.
Wright, 20, was killed by a Brooklyn Center police officer shortly before 2pm on Sunday during a routine traffic stop.
The young black man was shot just ten miles from where George Floyd was killed last summer, leading to an outpouring of anger from the community.
Bodycam footage from the fatal shooting reveals the moment cop Kim Potter accidentally shot him while trying to use a Taser.
Speaking yesterday, Brooklyn Center Police Chief Tim Gannon said she had intended to use a Taser – not a handgun – and described the shooting as an “accidental discharge”.
Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliott said the resignation of both Potter and Gannon came after the city council passed a resolution to dismiss the cops.
In a statement today, Potter said: “I am tendering my resignation from the Brooklyn Center Police Department effective immediately.
“I have loved every minute of being a police officer and serving this community to the best of my ability, but I believe it is in the interest of the community, the department, and my fellow officers if I resign immediately.”
Wright’s parents have refused to accept that their son was killed by “mistake”.
“I lost my son, he’s never coming back,” Wright’s dad, Aubrey Wright, told ABC News today.
“I can’t accept that – a mistake, that doesn’t even sound right.
“This officer has been on the force for 26 years. I can’t accept that.”
An emotional press briefing with the families of Wright and Floyd and Attorneys Ben Crump and Jeff Storms took place in Minneapolis this afternoon.
Screams of “say his name Daunte Wright” could be heard and his weeping mom, Katie Wright, said: “I held him in my arms.”
The crowd chanted “Daunte’s life mattered” and “Black Lives Matter”.
Wright’s distraught mom described the day of her son’s death “as the worst day of my life”.
Addressing the crowd, Wright’s aunt, Naisha, said: “They killed my nephew. Every pistol, even a Taser, has a safety on it. I watched that video like everybody else watched it – that woman held that gun in front of her so a long time.
“My nephew was 20-years-old – I don’t care what nobody has to say about him.
“My nephew was a lovable young man… the most beautiful smile. My nephew’s blood is on your hands.”
Chyna Whitaker, the heartbroken mom of Wright’s one-year-old son, Daunte Wright Jr, said: “My son, he don’t have a dad.
“I feel like they stole my son’s dad from him.”
One of Wright’s cousins grew tearful as he described how he won’t be able to spend another holiday with him.
“I won’t be able to spend holidays with him anymore,” he said, adding that the 4th of July was their favorite.
“We’re not going to be able to do that no more,” he said.
Attorney Ben Crump said the Wright family was “facing the agony of losing a family member to police excessive force”.
“This is a bittersweet moment,” he said. “It is somewhat gratifying that we have George Floyd’s family here, who left the courthouse where the trial of Derek Chauvin is underway because they thought it was important to comfort Daunte Wright’s family.
“Because this time last year, almost a year ago, they were facing the unimaginable, they were facing the unbelievable, they were facing the agony of losing a family member to police excessive force.
“And it is unbelievable, it is just something I cannot fathom that in Minneapolis, Minnesota, a suburb 10 miles from where the Chauvin trial regarding George Floyd was taking place, that a police officer would shoot and kill another unarmed black man… I wouldn’t believe it.”
Crump said “nobody in America should be killed by police” but particularly during the “pinnacle” trial of Chauvin.
He added: “Daunte Wright’s life matters, and so when you think about the fact that Daunte was trying to get away, he was not a threat to them.
“It is unacceptable. It was intentional they stopped him… that they used the most force. It reminds you of George Floyd. When it’s black people in America, they engage in the most use of force – with deadly consequences.”
In response to the resignation of Potter, Crump said: “We were informed that she resigned today – we have not been notified officially.”
Screams of “lock her up” were heard from the crowd following the question from the media about Potter’s resignation.
Philonise Floyd, George’s brother, told the crowd: “Another African American man being slayed, I never thought that this world could be in so much disorder.
“Police officers are killing us and we are being killed at a rate I never thought we could imagine.
“Minneapolis, you can’t sweep this under the rug anymore. To the protesters all around this nation, stand up. We need you all to come out.
“This is a family that needs us to stand in solidarity with them. Please pray for this family. I don’t want to see another victim.”
George Floyd’s nephew, Brandon, said: “We came to stand with this family. A so-called mistake? A handgun for a taser? It’s unacceptable.”
Toshira Garraway, the founder of Families Supporting Families Against Police Violence, told the crowd: “Over 470 murders at the hands of law enforcement… enough is enough, you will not separate our families, we are coming forward together.
“We are here today to put an end to everything that you guys have tried to cover up.”
