Minneapolis — A former Minnesota police officer who was convicted of killing a Black motorist by using her handgun instead of her taser during a traffic stop is out of prison and giving presentations at law enforcement conferences, sparking a heated debate about how officers punished for misconduct should atone for their actions.
After serving her term for the murder of Daunte Wright, Kim Potter met with the prosecutor who brought her case. Imran Ali, the former prosecutor, claimed Potter wanted to do something to help other officers avoid killing lives. Ali regarded the presentation as a road to atonement for police personnel who had made mistakes, as well as an opportunity to promote reconciliation in communities already traumatized by police misbehavior.
But Daunte’s mother, Katie Wright, described the proposal as an enraging scheme in which her son’s killer would profit from his death while also reviving terrible memories.
“I think Kim Potter had a second chance. She got to go home with her kids. “That was her second chance,” Wright explained. “I believe that even when police officers make mistakes, they continue to live in our community. They still get to live their lives. It’s their second opportunity. We don’t have a second chance to bring our loved ones back.
Potter did not answer to phone or email requests, and Ali declined to show the AP the entire presentation. However, he portrayed Potter’s first sentence in a presentation for a Washington state law enforcement organization as follows: “I killed Daunte Wright. I am not proud of it. “And neither should you be.”
That presentation was unexpectedly canceled in September after press reports sparked criticism. Other law enforcement organizations, including one of the largest in Minnesota, have hosted the lecture and continue to invite Potter to speak.
Some argue that canceling her presentation was short-sighted since she could have shared a cautionary tale with others who face life-or-death decisions in the field.
“This is exactly why I decided to go away. Someone realizes the need for reform, redemption, and engagement. “And still,” Ali stated. “If you’re in law enforcement in this country, there is no redemption.”
Initially, Ali served as co-counsel in the Potter case. But he quit, claiming that “vitriol” and “partisan politics” made it difficult to pursue justice. Ali is now a law enforcement consultant, and he says he is striving to help police implement improvements that will keep additional cops from committing Potter’s mistake.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, whose office took over Potter’s case after Ali resigned, believes the former officer’s public declaration of regret will help the community recover.
Wright was killed on April 11, 2021, at Brooklyn Center, just ten miles (16 kilometers) from where the cop who killed George Floyd was being tried. Wright’s death sparked protests while communities in Minneapolis and elsewhere were still hurting from Floyd’s murder. A jury later convicted Potter of manslaughter. Potter was sentenced to two years in jail after a judge determined that she had no intention of harming Wright. She was liberated after 16 months and later contacted Ali.
“I was like, Wow. Even after being convicted, being pushed out of your house, receiving several death threats, and being detained, you just don’t want to go away,” Ali explained.
The two have become regulars at Minnesota Sheriff’s Association events. They provided training sessions at conferences in June and September, with another training set for October. According to event schedules, they also presented out of state in May, when Potter spoke at a law enforcement conference in Indiana.
The Wright family’s attorney, Jeff Storms, stated that the narrative of the Washington training session in the contract created by Ali’s law company looks more like a commercial intended for troubled police officers than a personal account of Potter’s apologies.
“The officer and the prosecutor who resigned in protest will deliver a dynamic presentation on the truth of what occurred, the increased violence and noncompliance directed at law enforcement, the importance of training, and steps we can take in the future,” according to the training session contract obtained by The Associated Press.
Storms believes that passage implies Ali is providing engineering help for Potter and his law practice.
“They profit from police training. And so to claim that this is merely about Ms. Potter’s redemption arc through this training sounds quite unlikely,” Storms added.
According to the contract, Ali’s firm proposed charging $8,000 for the training session, which includes speaking fees and travel charges.
“To say my firm is trying to benefit off a $8,000 contract is ridiculous,” Ali told reporters.
He did not specify how much money Potter would make, but he did suggest it was far less than what she could earn presenting her tale through a book deal or another initiative.
Ali stated that he is committed to assisting law enforcement authorities in implementing improvements that will avoid future cops from making Potter’s error. The outcry against Potter recounting her tale during the training session reflects some people’s belief that redemption for individuals convicted of crimes does not apply to police officers, according to Ali.
“We can give the benefit of the doubt to people that are former Ku Klux Klan members or former skinheads that come in and educate, sometimes even our youth,” Ali told the audience. “But we cannot give law enforcement that chance.”
Rachel Moran, a professor specializing in police accountability at the University of St. Thomas School of Law, believes law enforcement agencies should consider the viewpoints of victims and their families when deciding who to include in training sessions. However, Potter’s voice may be able to permeate a law enforcement culture that is suspicious of outside criticism, she stated.
“Police officers culturally do have a pattern of not wanting to hear outside perspectives and not believing other people can understand the situation,” according to her. “So to hear from someone who is very much in their shoes, who’s actually willing to admit an error, I think that has potential to be heard more by officers than an outsider.”
In an interview, James Stuart, executive director of the Minnesota Sheriff’s Association, stated that Potter’s forthcoming presentation would go on, despite the criticism. His organization has a responsibility to learn from the “national moment of upheaval” caused by Potter’s murder of Wright.
“She’ll be the first to say she’s not a hero and it was a horrific tragic accident,” Stuart informed the audience. “I understand the concerns and the criticisms, but I would also hope they could understand the value of learning from mistakes and making sure that no other families find themselves in that same situation.”
