Show Notes
The state's prosecution and the defense made their closing arguments Monday.
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I’m Georgia Fort with the latest on the Kim Potter trial
A jury is deliberating the verdict in the Kim Potter trial. Closing arguments concluded Monday afternoon and the State rested its case.
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump addressed the media as deliberations got underway, calling for Potter to be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.
“The case was made. The evidence is there. The state went point by point of making the case that she violated the policies of the police department,” he said.
During closing arguments Erin Eldridge, one of the prosecuting attorneys, told the jury that not only did Potter take Daunte’s life but she also jeopardized the lives of her colleagues.
“If anyone saved Sgt. Johnson's life, it was Daunte Wright when he took a bullet to the chest,” she said.
Eldridge also contested the defense’s main argument that Potter accidentally mistook her gun for her taser.
“Human nature did not kill Daunte Wright - the defendant did,” said Eldridge. “The defendant told Dr. Miller ‘I don't make mistakes.’ Take that for what you will.”
Eldridge argued that even the use of a taser would have been negligent in this circumstance.
In closing arguments, defense attorney Earl Gray told the jury that Daunte Wright, not Potter, was responsible for his death, because he failed to comply.
“Her acts were all legal. Everything she did was legal - and then he tries to break away,” said Gray.
The jury began its deliberations in the early afternoon. Daunte Wright’s family and friends audibly gasped when Judge Regina Chu resumed the bench later in the afternoon, thinking the jury might have already come back with a verdict. In fact, the jury had paused its deliberations to ask when one of Potter’s interviews with the defense’s doctor took place. The prosecution had noted some of Potter’s answers in that interview didn’t match statements she made at other times. Judge Chu responded to the jury telling them they have all the evidence they need to decide the case.
What is Racial Reckoning: The Arc of Justice?
Right now: Covering the trial of Kim Potter accused of killing Daunte Wright, the community’s reaction, and exploring the changes needed to create a more just society.
Racial Reckoning: The Arc of Justice is a journalism initiative from Ampers, Diverse Radio for Minnesota’s Communities, KMOJ Radio, and the Minnesota Humanities Center covering the trials of the officers accused of killing George Floyd, the community’s reaction, and exploring the changes needed to create a more just society.