Kim Potter breaks down on the stand during testimony
Fox News legal analyst Gregg Jarrett says there's a very fine line between a mistake and culpable negligence.
Former Minnesota police officer Kim Potter, who accidentally killed Daunte Wright when she mistook her firearm for a stun gun during a traffic stop, is set to be released from prison Monday, records show.
Potter, 50, has served 16 months at the Shakopee Minnesota Correctional Facility and will serve another eight months on supervised release.
A shocking new booking photo shows the former Brooklyn Center police officer's deterioration behind bars.
KIM POTTER SENTENCING: EX-COP WHO KILLED DAUNTE WRIGHT HIT WITH 16 MONTHS BEHIND BARS
Kim Potter's booking photo, left, after she was convicted of killing Daunte Wright, and her recent booking photo taken at Minnesota Correctional Facility – Shakopee in advance of her release. (Minnesota Department of Corrections)
Potter, a 26-year veteran, had a spotless record when the tragic mistake ruined her career and cost Wright his life.
The deadly confrontation unfolded April 11, 2021, after Wright, 20, was pulled over for expired license tags in Brooklyn Center — about 15 miles from where George Floyd was murdered in Minneapolis in 2020.
It turned out Wright had an open arrest warrant for failure to appear on a weapons charge. When Potter tried to arrest him, she believed he was attempting to flee and mistakenly drew her firearm instead of her stun gun.
Potter is shown in a booking photo, left, after her conviction, next to a second booking photo taken at the Minnesota Correctional Facility - Shakopee in advance of her release.
Potter can be seen in body camera footage shouting, "I'll tase you! Taser! Taser! Taser!" before firing a single round. "I grabbed the wrong f---ing gun," she can be heard saying before collapsing on the curb.
The mother of two was convicted by a jury of first-degree and second-degree manslaughter, but Judge Regina Chu handed down a sentence significantly below the state-recommended minimum.
Chu, who grew emotional as she spoke, said that Potter was clearly remorseful. "She never intended to hurt anyone. Her conduct cries out for a sentence significantly below the guidelines," the jurist told the court.
Daunte Wright and his son, Daunte Jr., at the boy's first birthday party. Wright, 20, was fatally shot by Kim Potter, a white suburban Minneapolis police officer, during a traffic stop on April 11, 2021. (Ben Crump Law, PLLC. via AP)
The sentencing range on first-degree manslaughter is from slightly more than six to about eight and a half years, from which a judge can depart if there are mitigating or aggravating circumstances.
During the sentencing, Potter turned and apologized directly to Wright's family.
"To the family of Daunte Wright, I am so sorry that I brought the death of your son, father, brother, uncle, grandson, nephew," she told them through tears, before addressing the slain man's mother.
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"Katie, I understand a mother’s love, and I am sorry I broke your heart. My heart is broken for all of you," Potter said.
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