Katie Wright, the mother of 20-year-old Daunte Wright, slammed the sentencing of former Minnesota police officer Kim Potter, arguing that the judge was swayed by “white woman tears.”
Potter was sentenced on Friday to two years in prison and supervised release for fatally shooting Daunte Write in April 2021. The former officer was previously convicted of first-degree and second-degree manslaughter in connection with Daunte Wright’s death.
Wright, who is white, told reporters that Potter “murdered my son,” and that, with this sentence, “the justice system murdered him all over again,” The Associated Press reported.
She accused Judge Regina Chu of being fooled by Potter’s performance on the stand, and alleged that the former officer was coached.
Wright’s mother said during the victim impact statements at Potter’s sentencing that she would never be able to forgive Potter for what she did.
“She never once said his name [in the trial]. And for that I’ll never be able to forgive you. And I’ll never be able to forgive you for what you’ve stolen from us,” Katie Wright said.
Potter addressed Katie in her speech in court, saying she didn’t look at her during the trial because she didn’t believe she had a “right” to do so after what happened. Potter broke down on the stand at her sentencing Friday and said her “heart is broken” for Wright’s family and that she prays for them “many times a day.”
After the sentencing, Wright questioned why her own emotions didn’t get the same sympathetic response.
“This is the problem with our justice system today. White women tears trump — trump — justice. And I thought my white woman tears would be good enough because they’re true and genuine,” Wright said, per the AP.
Chu, who was visibly emotional as she handed out the ruling, acknowledged many would not be happy with her decision, but believed given the circumstances Potter’s case did not warrant the normal sentencing.
She said the case was “one of the saddest” she’s seen in her 20 years as a judge.
In a sentencing memo, prosecutors asked the judge to give Potter 86 months, a little more than seven years. First-degree manslaughter has a sentencing of 15 years in Minnesota, but judges can lower the sentence if a person, like Potter, has no criminal history.
