Cases of officers mistaking their service pistol for a Taser have been rare
Updated Apr 13, 2021;
Posted Apr 13, 2021
Daunte Wright s mother, Katie, eulogizes her son at his vigil, Monday, April 12, 2021, as the community responded to the police killing of 20-year-old Wright, with hundreds joining his family at the location on 63 Ave. N. in Brooklyn Center, Minn., where he was killed. (Jeff Wheeler/Star Tribune via AP)AP
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The Brooklyn Center police on Monday said the fatal shooting of Daunte Wright came by way of a rare mistake: An officer drew a service pistol when she thought she was holding a Taser.
Gun, Taser Mix-Ups Were Blamed in These 13 U.S. Police Shootings Since 2001
On 4/13/21 at 12:52 PM EDT
Duante Wright became at least the fourth person in the U.S. to be killed by a police officer who mistakenly fired a gun instead of their Taser.
Wright, a 20-year-old Black man, was fatally shot by Brooklyn Center Police Department officer Kimberly Potter, 48, after he was stopped for a traffic violation on Sunday.
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At a press conference on Monday, Brooklyn Center Police Chief Tim Gannon said he believed that Potter had meant to use a Taser on Wright.
He said: It is my belief that the officer intended to deploy their Taser, but instead shot Mr. Wright with a single bullet.