Police: Minnesota officer meant to draw Taser, not handgun
April 12, 2021 2:46PM CDT
A man is injured as protesters clash with police in front of the Brooklyn Center Police station on Sunday, April 11, 2021, in Brooklyn Center, Minn. The family of Daunte Wright, 20, told a crowd that he was shot by police Sunday before getting back into his car and driving away, then crashing the vehicle several blocks away. The family said Wright was later pronounced dead. (AP Photo/Christian Monterrosa)
By MOHAMED IBRAHIM Associated Press
BROOKLYN CENTER, Minn. (AP) — The police chief in a Minneapolis suburb where a Black man was fatally shot during a traffic stop says he believes the officer who fired intended to use a Taser, not a handgun.
Police Chief Tim Gannon described the shooting of 20-year-old Daunte Wright as “an accidental discharge.” Wright died Sunday in Brooklyn Center, a city of about 30,000 people on the northwest border of Minneapolis. His death sparked violent protests, with officers in riot gear clashing with demonstrators into Monday morning.
The Minneapolis area was already on edge because of the trial of the first of four police officers charged in George Floyd’s death.
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