Officer Kim Potter is charged with second-degree manslaughter

[Della]

Despite Daunte calling his mother in the middle of the stop and telling her the police had stopped him because he had air fresheners hanging from his mirror ( an offence in Minnesota,) it was really because his car’s tags were expired.


After officers Daunte's name, they found an outstanding "gross misdemeanor" warrant involving a gun and his rap sheet indicated armed robbery in the past.

My guess is that once Daunte struggled away from the police, jumped back in the car, and let his right hand go out of sight between the seats -- Kim thought he was getting his gun. She was thinking "I'll get my taser and tase him" at the same moment her brain thought, "GUN!" and that's when her hand went for her own gun instead of her taser.

I feel so bad for her because she was evidently a dedicated, model cop all day everyday for 26 years and just had this one bad moment. Yes, Daunte lost his life, but he already had committed several crimes involving guns and had run from the police a few weeks earlier. No, he didn't deserve to die, but when you choose to walk on the wrong side of the law and physically fight with police you are choosing to put yourself and others in danger. Even in this instance he caused a wreck that injured someone else. I wonder if she had deliberately shot him because she thought he was reaching for a gun if she would be in as much trouble? Are police now expected to step back and just let people go whenever they try to flee the police?

I think Kim should be held accountable but second degree murder?

 

[garyt1957]

wilt like a wet kleenix? I would not 'wilt' but I may mess my pants a couple times and be realy shaky. the hyped up adrenal secretion during a panic situation is enough to make most shaky enough to miss when firing a weapon but drawing the wrong one? I dont think so considering they are carried on opposite sides of the utility belt..

OK Rambo

 

[garyt1957]

The fact the officer had 26 years under her belt tells me she had lots of time and experience to fine-tune her skills differentiating between her taser and her gun.

The other issue that troubles me is, people buying into the idea that she was under pressure. She wasn't under pressure, the suspect had no weapon, the officers closed to him weren't being overpowered by the driver of the car, there was no immediate danger to anyone.

Most cops go through a 30 year career without ever pulling their gun and certainly without firing it. The suspect had no weapon? He jumped back in his car after resisting arrest , how does anyone know he doesn't have a weapon? And he already had a record for gun use. No pressure? Please. Everytime someone resists arrest the pressure is crazy. You have no idea what they're capable of doing. You people watch too many movies. It was a terrible mistake and she'll have to pay but all the TJ Hookers out there make me laugh.

 

[cdestroyer]

no not rambo!! and how was the officer to know the man had a previous record? did she call in and get the report? if so then she had plenty of time to get the correct weapon....a little logic here and less nonsense names

 

[OneEyedDiva]

She wasn't a rookie. How could she not know the difference? Hell, Stevie Wonder probably could have told the difference. I'm so tired of the lame excuses used by or made for these officers!

 

[Jim W.]

If the dirty job of being a police officer and keeping the streets clean of the garbage of society becomes anymore difficult and fraught with the peril of being sent to prison for untold years over mistakes, we may eventually have to develop and rely upon something like....

Because before long, nobody will be willing to accept the risk anymore.

As long as police are human beings, they will make mistakes and errors.

 

[Aunt Marg]

Most cops go through a 30 year career without ever pulling their gun and certainly without firing it. The suspect had no weapon? He jumped back in his car after resisting arrest , how does anyone know he doesn't have a weapon? And he already had a record for gun use. No pressure? Please. Everytime someone resists arrest the pressure is crazy. You have no idea what they're capable of doing. You people watch too many movies. It was a terrible mistake and she'll have to pay but all the TJ Hookers out there make me laugh.

The male police officers handling the suspect in front of the female officer didn't seem concerned enough to draw their tasers or guns, so it perplexes me why the female officer felt the need to draw hers, other than to grandstand.

 

[garyt1957]

no not rambo!! and how was the officer to know the man had a previous record? did she call in and get the report? if so then she had plenty of time to get the correct weapon....a little logic here and less nonsense names

Just because he had priors doesn't mean you can automatically tase him. Once he resisted arrest and jumped back in his car all bets are off. I'm sure the police are hiring if you think it's so easy.

 

[Della]

no not rambo!! and how was the officer to know the man had a previous record? did she call in and get the report? if so then she had plenty of time to get the correct weapon....a little logic here and less nonsense names

When police pull over cars they usually run the license number before they even get out of the car and information is automatically returned. Last year, I was pulled over for what the officer thought was outdated tags and as he pulled the squad car parallel to my car I could hear the automated voice from his dash saying my name and that my tags were good until 2004.

So, Kim and the other officers probably knew Daunte might have a gun before they approached his car, but as long as he was cooperating they had no need to pull any weapon at all. It was only after he jumped away from them and into the car that it was appropriate to pull a weapon, and that was just a matter of seconds.

 

[Jim W.]

When police pull over cars they usually run the license number before they even get out of the car and information is automatically returned. Last year, I was pulled over for what the officer thought was outdated tags and as he pulled the squad car parallel to my car I could hear the automated voice from his dash saying my name and that my tags were good until 2004.

So, Kim and the other officers probably knew Daunte might have a gun before they approached his car, but as long as he was cooperating they had no need to pull any weapon at all. It was only after he jumped away from them and into the car that it was appropriate to pull a weapon, and that was just a matter of seconds.

Are you saying that when the cops pull over a known felon, likely with a history of violence and who probably has a loaded and chambered handgun in his possession... which he could whip out in a split second and start shooting them.... that the cops should wait until he has the chance to kill one or ore of them before they draw their guns?

I cannot agree with that.

 

[ohioboy]

If they knew he was a convicted felon with a firearm record, they should have ordered him out by bullhorn. Did they?

 

[Butterfly]

Are you saying that when the cops pull over a known felon, likely with a history of violence and who probably has a loaded and chambered handgun in his possession... which he could whip out in a split second and start shooting them.... that the cops should wait until he has the chance to kill one or ore of them before they draw their guns?

I cannot agree with that.

Are you saying that when the cops pull over a known felon, likely with a history of violence and who probably has a loaded and chambered handgun in his possession... which he could whip out in a split second and start shooting them.... that the cops should wait until he has the chance to kill one or ore of them before they draw their guns?

I cannot agree with that.

Agree or not, just because a person has a criminal history does not give the cops a license to kill. The issue isn't that she drew her sidearm, it is that she fired it and he died as the result.

 

[Jim W.]

Agree or not, just because a person has a criminal history does not give the cops a license to kill. The issue isn't that she drew her sidearm, it is that she fired it and he died as the result.

What it gives the cops a VALID REASON to do is draw their weapons as they approach. Especially if the cops have reason to believe the criminal may be armed with a gun.

If a criminal is too stupid to understand that the cops don't play games and that if he makes any sudden moves he could get shot to death on the spot, then that is on the criminal.

Certainly, cop made a mistake shooting her gun instead of her taser, but to say, as the post I was replying to above said, that the cops shouldn't draw their weapons until the criminal starts resisting, is just wrong afaic.

The police deserve to protect themselves in any manner that they are trained to and are able to and I'd rather see 100 dead criminal lowlifes than 1 dead cop.

Why so many people sympathize with criminals nowadays I will never understand.

 

[Della]

Are you saying that when the cops pull over a known felon, likely with a history of violence and who probably has a loaded and chambered handgun in his possession... which he could whip out in a split second and start shooting them.... that the cops should wait until he has the chance to kill one or ore of them before they draw their guns?

I cannot agree with that.

No, no, I didn't mean to say that I thought they shouldn't pull their guns, they can do that anytime they feel the need as far as I'm concerned.

I was just describing what the police seemed to be doing and thinking on the day of the incident based on the videos and reports. @cdestroyer had said Kim had plenty of time to "get the right weapon" as though Kim had been in the process of pulling a weapon from the squad car to the moment she shot Daunte. I don't think she thought of pulling a weapon until the moment he resisted the cuffs and jumped back in the car.

 

[garyt1957]

If they knew he was a convicted felon with a firearm record, they should have ordered him out by bullhorn. Did they?

What difference does that make? He was out of the car, he decided to resist arrest and get back in the car. Whether they got him out of the car by bullhorn, or by force, or he just got out willingly, he was out. If he doesn't resist arrest and get back in the car none of this happens. Moral of the story, Don't Resist!