Jury begins deliberations in Kim Potter?s trial over killing of Daunte Wright

The jury in the manslaughter trial of Kim Potter, the suburban Minneapolis police officer who says she meant to use her Taser instead of her gun when she shot and killed the Black motorist, Daunte Wright, began deliberating on Monday afternoon.

A prosecutor had told jurors earlier in the day that Potter knew what she did was wrong, she made a "blunder of epic proportions" and that she did not have "a license to kill".

Prosecutor Erin Eldridge said in closing arguments in Potter's manslaughter trial that the former Brooklyn Center police officer was a "highly trained" and "highly experienced" 26-year veteran who acted recklessly.

"She drew a deadly weapon," Eldridge told the court. "She aimed it. She pointed it at Daunte Wright's chest, and she fired."

Although there is a risk every time an officer makes traffic stop, that didn't justify Potter using her gun on Wright after he pulled away from her and other officers on 11 April as they were trying to arrest him on an outstanding weapons possession warrant, Eldridge said.

"Carrying a badge and a gun is not a license to kill," she said.

During his closing argument, Potter's attorney, Earl Gray, said Wright "caused the whole incident" because he tried to flee from police during a traffic stop.

Potter mistakenly grabbed her gun because the stop "was chaos", he said, adding that Potter didn't know she was holding her gun.

Judge Regina Chu has told the mostly white jury that she will not make them deliberate on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day and they will return after the holiday if necessary.

Potter is charged with first-degree and second-degree manslaughter in the death of Wright, 20, who was pulled over for having expired license tags and an air freshener hanging from his rearview mirror.

The defense rested on Friday after Potter told jurors she "didn't want to hurt anybody", saying during sometimes tearful testimony she shouted a warning about using her Taser on Wright after she saw fear in a fellow officer's face.

Potter, 49, testified that she was "sorry it happened". She said she didn't remember what she said or everything that happened after the shooting, saying much of her memory of those moments "is missing".

Potter, who was training another officer at the time, said she probably wouldn't have pulled Wright over if she had been on her own. After that initial encounter, the traffic stop "just went chaotic", she testified.

"I remember yelling, 'Taser, Taser, Taser,' and nothing happened, and then he told me I shot him," Potter said through tears. Her body camera recorded Wright saying, "Ah, he shot me."

Potter's attorneys argued she made a mistake but would have been justified in using deadly force if she had meant to because Sgt Mychal Johnson was at risk of being dragged by Wright's car.

Prosecutor Erin Eldridge noted that Potter told a defense expert she didn't know why she drew her Taser. Quoting from the expert's report, Eldridge said Potter told him: "I don't have an answer, my brain said grab the Taser."

Potter testified she didn't recall saying that.

Prosecutors have argued that Potter had extensive training about Taser use and in use of deadly force, including warnings about confusing the two weapons. Eldridge got Potter to agree that her use-of-force training was a "key component" of being an officer. Potter testified that she was trained on when to use force and how much, and that there was a department policy that dictated what officers could or could not do.

Wright's death set off angry demonstrations for several days. It happened as another white officer, Derek Chauvin, was standing trial in nearby Minneapolis for the killing of George Floyd.

Before Potter took the stand, a defense witness testified that officers can mistakenly draw guns instead of Tasers under high-stress situations because ingrained training takes over.

Laurence Miller, a psychologist at Florida Atlantic University, said the more someone repeats the same act, the less they have to think about it and there can be circumstances during a stressful situation in which someone's normal reactions may be "hijacked".

Some experts are skeptical of the theory. Geoffrey Alpert, a criminology professor at the University of South Carolina who is not involved in the trial, has said there's no science behind it.

State sentencing guidelines call for just over seven years in prison upon conviction of first-degree manslaughter and four years for second-degree. Prosecutors have said they plan to push for longer sentences.