Potter, dressed in a black sweater over a black and white blouse, did not react when the verdicts were read. She was ordered to be held without bail. After the jury was excused, one of Potter’s lawyers buried his head in his hands.
Protesters outside the courthouse applauded and cheered.
The maximum penalty for first-degree manslaughter based on reckless use/handling of a firearm is 15 years in prison and/or a $30,000 fine. However, since the 49-year-old Potter has no criminal record, the conviction guidelines in Minnesota recommend a prison term of approximately 6 to 8.5 years.
Judge Regina Chu turned down a request from Potter’s lawyers to let her go home before issuing her conviction, citing her deep roots in the community.
“I can’t handle this case any differently than any other case,” Chu said.
The former Brooklyn Center police officer was handcuffed and escorted from the courtroom. Her husband, a former police officer, yelled, “I love you.”
“I love you,” she said.
The verdict was set on February 18.
Jurors in the trial of the white ex-officer in the fatal shooting of the 20-year-old black man deliberated for about 27 hours since Monday when, in closing arguments, a prosecutor described the former officer’s actions as a tragic blunder born of recklessness or negligence and the defense as an honest fault not a crime.
As the video of the incident shows, Potter yelled “Taser” repeatedly before shooting Wright with her pistol. She then said, “Holy sh*t! I just shot him!” She added: “I grabbed the wrong f**king gun, and I shot it.” She resigned from the department a few days later.
The case revolved around the jury’s interpretation of Potter’s fatal error — whether, as the prosecution claimed, it was due to her recklessness and negligence, or whether it was an unfortunate accident that didn’t rise to the level of a crime. as the defense has argued.
More than 30 witnesses, including Potter himself, took the stand during the eight-day testimony of the trial. An emotional Potter testified for hours and burst into tears several times as she described the “chaotic” moments leading up to the shooting.
“I was very distraught. I just shot someone. I’m sorry it happened,” she said crying in court. “I’m very sorry.”
During the cross-examination, Potter said Wright did not threaten the officers before firing. She said she didn’t remember much of what happened after the shooting, but acknowledged she hadn’t helped treat Wright’s injuries or monitor her colleagues.
Potter was far from a rogue officer. She testified that before that day she had never deployed her taser or fired a pistol while on duty, and that she had never had a complaint against her.
In her closing statement, Assistant Attorney General of Minnesota Erin Eldridge said Potter made a series of wrong choices during the traffic stop that led to the fatal confusion.
Accidents can still be crimes if they happen through recklessness or culpable negligence. “It is not a defense against the indicted crimes.”
The defense has characterized the murder as an unfortunate accident that should not be considered a crime.
“Everyone makes mistakes, no one is perfect,” said attorney Earl Grey. “This lady has made a mistake and a mistake is not a crime.”
He also claimed that Potter was within her rights to use deadly force to protect a fellow officer, who reached into the vehicle as Wright attempted to drive away.
“Even though she didn’t know she was using it, she had a right to, and that’s what the law is,” he said.
Jason Hanna, Eric Levenson, Ashley Killough, Carma Hassan, Brad Parks and Anna-Maja Rappard of DailyExpertNews contributed to this report.
