Former Minneapolis police officer Kim Potter, who was jailed over the death of motorist Daunte Wright, has been released from prison.
Potter served 16 months of her two-year sentence for manslaughter and will be on probation until Dec. 21, when that sentence ends, the Minnesota Department of Corrections said in a press release.
"Minnesota is a determinate sentencing state, meaning that individuals serve two-thirds of their sentence in prison and the remaining third on supervised release," said DOC spokesperson Andy Skoogman in a statement. "The term of imprisonment is set by law; there is no parole board and no time off for good behavior."
Potter, who is White, was an officer with the Brooklyn Center Police Department when she killed Wright, who was Black, during a traffic stop. She said she mistook her gun for her Taser, and fatally shot the 20-year-old on April 11, 2021.
She had testified in court that everything "just went chaotic" when Wright tried to get in his car and leave, according to the Associated Press.
"I remember yelling, 'Taser, Taser, Taser,' and nothing happened, and then he told me I shot him," Potter had said.
Kim Potter: Daunte Wright Traffic Stop 'Just Went Chaotic'
Kim Potter, who is charged with manslaughter in Daunte Wright's death, said she saw a look of fear on another officer's face before she fired.
Given the controversies surrounding the incident, Potter was released at 4 a.m. for her safety, and for the safety of security and staff at the correctional facility.
"The DOC’s criminal intelligence analysts closely monitored intelligence information in the days leading up to Potter’s release. The analysts obtained information that elevated concern for Ms. Potter’s safety, including threatening comments directed at her and the potential for violent protests outside the Shakopee correctional facility," Skoogman said in a press release.
Wright was pulled over for his expired license tags and for having an air freshener hanging from his rearview mirror. Officers also noticed he had a warrant for a misdemeanor weapons charge. Civil rights advocates have argued that laws against objects hanging from rearview mirrors have been used as a pretext for stopping Black drivers on the road.
