Daunte Wright settlement: Brooklyn Center agrees to pay family $3.25M over police shooting death

The city of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, has settled with the family of Daunte Wright, an unarmed Black man who was killed by a police officer during a traffic stop last year, for $3.25 million. 

Wright was fatally shot in April 2021 by then-Officer Kim Potter who said she meant to reach for her stun gun.

The settlement won’t be finalized until an agreement is reached over police training on issues like officer intervention, implicit bias, weapons confusion, mental health crises and other issues, along with a permanent memorial to Wright, a statement from the family’s attorneys said. 

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“The comprehensive settlement in this tragic case will provide a meaningful measure of accountability to the family for their deep loss of a son, sibling and father, and they hope and believe the measures of change to policing, policies and training will create important improvements to the community in Daunte’s name,” family lawyer Antonio Romanucci said in the statement. “Nothing can bring him back, but the family hopes his legacy is a positive one and prevents any other family from enduring the type of grief they will live with for the rest of their lives.” 

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Potter was convicted of first and second-degree manslaughter and sentenced to two years in prison earlier this year. 

Wright had been pulled over for having expired tags and an air freshener hanging from his mirror. Potter shot him after he jumped back into his vehicle when she tried to arrest him after realizing he was wanted on a non-felony warrant. Potter shouted “Taser! Taser!” before she shot. 

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Family attorney Jeff Storms said there is no “true justice” for Wright’s family because “Daunte is never coming home” but the settlement by the city shows a “commitment to accountability for this small community.”

He said their goal with the lawsuit was to strike a balance between holding the city accountable while not “undermining the financial stability of the city or limiting the services it provides to its residents, many of whom are people of color.”

Last year, Minneapolis settled with the family of George Floyd, also killed during an arrest, for $27 million.