AP Photo/Christian Monterrosa
Last summer, we watched rioting take hold in cities all over the nation following the death of George Floyd while in police custody. A trial related to that incident is ongoing, which is likely heightening tensions.
However, now there’s been another incident, this time a shooting of a black man during a traffic stop.
Damage is being reported and arrests were made as unrest continued for a second night after the shooting death of 20-year-old Daunte Wright during a traffic stop in Brooklyn Center.
Wright was shot and killed by a Brooklyn Center police officer Sunday. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension identified the officer involved as Kim Potter.
April 12, 2021
City leaders in Brooklyn Center, a suburb of Minneapolis, imposed curfews after violent unrest following the police shooting of Daunte Wright.
SHOW TRANSCRIPT
Police releasing a portion of the body camera footage from the shooting that killed Daunte Wright. It is my belief that the officer intended to deploy their taser but instead shot Mr. Wright with a single bullet, Chief Tim Gannon of the Brooklyn Center Police Department said.
Activists rejecting the police narrative. It s always an excuse for killing our people. And at this point, we don t know what to believe, Toshira Garraway with Families Supporting Families Against Police Violence said.
Chief Gannon described it as a “accidental shooting.” The female officer is on administrative leave. The investigation has been turned over to state authorities. https://t.co/Q9skWdsh8g
Brooklyn Center chief Tim Gannon: “As I watch the video & listen to the officer’s commands, it is my belief that the officer had the intention to deploy their taser but instead shot [Daunte] Wright with a single bullet. This appears to me… that this was an accidental discharge” pic.twitter.com/4hlDyVmLG2
WARNING GRAPHIC
Brooklyn Center, MN police release bodycam footage of the moments leading to the fatal shooting of 20-year-old Daunte Wright pic.twitter.com/Ig9CKQaBN0
AP Photo/Christian Monterrosa
As we reported earlier here and here, Minneapolis erupted in riots again last night after a fatal police shooting involving 20-year-old Daunte Wright in the nearby town of Brooklyn Center.
They had stopped Wright for an alleged traffic violation and found out he had an outstanding warrant, according to the police. That’s when Wright tried to get back into his vehicle and one officer fired at him, hitting him. He drove several blocks before crashing. They gave him CPR but he died at the scene.
The riot was like a throwback to the end of May last year, after George Floyd’s death. Rioters looted and/or destroyed stores in Brooklyn Center including a Foot Locker, T Mobile, and a New York men’s clothing store, as well as stores all over Minneapolis. They destroyed multiple police vehicles and even shot up a police station.