MINNEAPOLIS (AP) 鈥 A white former police officer convicted of manslaughter after mistaking her handgun for a Taser and fatally shooting Black motorist Daunte Wright in suburban Minneapolis in 2021 is set to be released from prison Monday.
Minnesota Department of Corrections spokesman Andy Skoogman announced Friday that former officer Kim Potter was to be released after serving about 16 months of her two-year sentence. He said the exact timing of her departure Monday from Minnesota Correctional Facility-Shakopee won鈥檛 be disclosed for security reasons.
鈥淥ur criminal investigative analysts are working closely with law enforcement to monitor the situation to ensure Kim Potter, like all incarcerated persons, is safe as she leaves our facility,鈥 Skoogman said in a statement.
The shooting happened April 2021 as Derek Chauvin was on trial in Minneapolis on murder charges in . Wright's death sparked several days of protests.
Judge Regina Chu had said at that she would be required to serve two-thirds of her sentence 鈥 16 months 鈥 then spend the rest on probation.
Potter, now 50, appears much thinner in a new photo released by the Department of Corrections. Her attorney, Earl Gray, said he had 鈥渘o idea鈥 why her appearance changed.
鈥淚t just shows it鈥檚 rough doing time," Gray said. "I don鈥檛 know many mug shots that show somebody in a good light.鈥
A message left with civil rights attorney Ben Crump, the lawyer for Wright's family, wasn't immediately returned.
Wright, a 20-year-old father, was killed on April 11, 2021, after Brooklyn Center officers pulled him over for having expired license tags and an air freshener hanging from his rearview mirror. Officers discovered he had a warrant for a misdemeanor weapons possession charge and he was shot during a struggle as officers tried to arrest him.
Civil rights advocates say laws against hanging objects from rearview mirrors have been used as a pretext for stopping Black motorists.
Potter is heard on video yelling 鈥淭aser鈥 several times just before she fires her pistol as Wright tried to drive away from the traffic stop.
The state attorney general鈥檚 office had sought a sentence recommended by state guidelines of just over seven years in prison. Wright's family and Crump denounced the two-year sentence as too lenient and accused the judge of giving more consideration to the white officer than the Black victim.
Wright鈥檚 mother, Katie Wright, said after the sentencing that Potter 鈥渕urdered my son,鈥 adding: 鈥淭oday the justice system murdered him all over again.鈥
Chu said at the time that the case wasn鈥檛 the same as other high-profile killings, including George Floyd's death that resulted in a 22 1/2-year . 鈥淭his is a cop who made a tragic mistake,鈥 she said.
Defense attorneys argued at the sentencing hearing that Potter deserved leniency because Wright was trying to drive away and Potter had the right to defend herself.
Potter, a 26-year police veteran, apologized to Wright's family at sentencing and spoke directly to his mother: 鈥淜atie, I understand a mother鈥檚 love. I鈥檓 sorry I broke your heart ... my heart is broken and devastated for all of you.鈥
