Police say officer killed young black man by mistake 1:55
(CNN) ––
During an arrest, a police officer in a Minneapolis suburb took her firearm instead of her stun gun –– which in the US is known as a "Taser" –– and fired a shot that charged the The life of Daunte Wright, an unarmed 20-year-old black man, in what authorities have described as an "accidental" shooting.
Minnesota mobilizes the National Guard for protests over the death of a black man in an incident with the police
The Brooklyn Center, Minnesota police released details of the events on Monday, as well as body camera images.
Which gave an account of what happened when police tried to stop Wright this Sunday after a traffic stop, but ended up shooting him.
The situation sparked a night of protests and shootings near the city's police station.
The agent who fatally shot Wright was identified Monday night as Kim Potter, according to a press release from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA).
Potter has been with the Brooklyn Center police department for 26 years, according to the agency.
"Incomprehensible"
The mayor of Brooklyn Center, the suburb where Daunte Wright was shot, called the shooting "incomprehensible" and "heartbreaking."
All while a jury in nearby Minneapolis decides what the future will be for Derek Chauvin, the cop charged in the death of George Floyd, whose case sparked a summer of social unrest last year.
«I want to say that our hearts ache at this moment, we suffer at this moment.
And we recognize that this could not have happened at a worse time, "said Mayor Mike Elliot.
"We recognize that this is happening when our community, when the entire United States, indeed the entire world, is watching our community," he added.
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US President Joe Biden called for "peace and calm."
Meanwhile, authorities in Minneapolis and St. Paul declared emergencies and curfews before the riots that are expected for the second night in a row this Monday.
Hennepin counties –– where Brooklyn Center is located–– Anoka, Ramsey and Dakota will also be under curfew.
Protests after black man's death in Minnesota 0:51
The state Bureau of Criminal Detention (BCA) is investigating the shooting and did not participate in the press conference.
Agency officials have not responded to CNN's request for comment.
City Police Chief Tim Gannon said the video was released for the sake of transparency and the BCA does not condone the release of images in ongoing investigations.
Gannon added that the portion of the body camera footage released Monday led him to believe the shooting was accidental.
Also that the agent's actions prior to the shooting were consistent with the department's training on stun guns.
“While I was watching the video and listening to the orders of the police, I believe that the agent had the intention of using her stun gun.
But instead he shot Mr. Wright with a single bullet, "Gannon said.
"This seems to me - from what I have seen and from the officer's reaction and anguish immediately afterward - that it was an accidental discharge that resulted in the tragic death of Mr. Wright," he added.
The video shows three policemen at a traffic stop.
However, the only video released was a one-minute clip of the agent firing her gun.
Gannon did not release details about the police, except to say that she is a veteran of the department and is now on administrative leave.
He also indicated that the city will release its name, but as of Monday night it had not yet done so.
“I felt that the community needed to know what had happened.
They needed to see it.
I needed to be transparent.
And I want to be frank, ”Gannon emphasized.
Seven cases of violent deaths of black citizens that have generated large protests in the United States.
It is common, though not always mandatory, for law enforcement agencies to turn over shooting investigations to outside entities.
This is to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest.
Gannon said he asked the BCA to investigate and present its findings, "independently of me," to authorities and attorneys to review the case.
A spokesman for the US Department of Justice said the shooting was a local matter.
In that sense, he indicated that the department is not involved in the investigation.
The Hennepin County district attorney said the case was sent to another county to avoid a "semblance of conflict of interest."
Ben Crump, a lawyer for the Wright family, called the shooting "completely avoidable" and "inhumane."
"As Minneapolis and the rest of the country continue to grapple with the tragic murder of George Floyd, we must now also mourn the loss of this young man and father," he said.
Details of what happened to Daunte Wright
Wright was driving with his girlfriend on Sunday afternoon to the house of his older brother, when police stopped him at a traffic stop for an expired ticket, authorities said.
Agents also learned that Wright had a pending warrant and attempted to handcuff him while he was standing outside his car.
Wright's older brother, Damik Bryant, told CNN that he texted Wright moments before the shooting.
In the communication he asked why he was taking so long.
Wright responded with another text message, saying he was detained and asked for insurance information, Bryant said.
Then his brother told him to call his mother.
Daunte Wright provided agents with his name before calling his mother, Bryant said.
«They asked him to get out of the car.
And, you know, his first instinct was to say, 'What did I do, what's wrong?'
And they told him like, 'Well, hang up the phone, get out of the car now.
We'll talk to you when you get out, '”Bryant said.
"He said he was pulled over (at the traffic stop) because he had air fresheners hanging from the rearview mirror," Daunte Wright's mother, Katie Wright, told CNN affiliate WCCO.
"I heard the police officer come to the window and say, 'Put down the phone and get out of the car.'
And Daunte said, 'Why?'
He said, 'We'll explain it to him when he gets out of the car,' ”the mother also told CNN affiliate KARE.
“So, I heard that the phone was left on the dash or dropped.
And I heard altercations, and I heard the police officers say 'Daunte, don't run.'
Then the other police officer said, 'Hang up the phone,' ”before it sounded as if the call had hung up, the mother added.
In body camera footage released Monday, a police officer tells Wright "don't do it," as Wright pulls away from an officer to return to the car.
Gannon said it appeared in the video that Wright was trying to leave.
The officer, wearing the body camera whose footage was released, is heard warning the man that he is going to use his stun gun, before repeatedly yelling, 'Taser!
Taser!
Taser!
Then, the agent is heard shouting: «Mie ***!
I just shot him.
The video stops moments later.
Gannon said the shot appeared to be "an accidental discharge."
He added that the conduct of the officer who shot Daunte Wright - shouting "Taser" three times to alert nearby officers that he was about to fire his stun gun - was consistent with his training.
The events occurred in Brooklyn Park, about 10 miles from where former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin faces trial for the death of another black man, George Floyd.
Hundreds of people protested after Wright's death
When news of Wright's death spread this Sunday night, hundreds of people protested.
Gannon told reporters that a police officer was hit on the head by an object thrown by protesters, who used frozen soda cans and pieces of rocks.
The Minnesota National Guard had planned to increase the number of soldiers as the closing arguments in the Chauvin trial approach.
More than 500 members of the Guard have been activated.
In addition, the entity said it plans to increase the number of service members, "in response to the overnight events at Brooklyn Center."
As anger over Wright's death grew Sunday night, before it was known that the shooting seemed accidental, aerial footage from KARE showed multiple police cars around the crowded Brooklyn Center crash site.
In the video you could see people trying to damage police cars.
About 100 to 200 people marched toward the Brooklyn Center Police Department, said John Harrington, commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS).
After dark, a crowd gathered around the police department, CNN crews at the scene reported.
The officers formed a line outside the building, with some police officers stationed at the top of the establishment.
Harrington noted that there were reports of people throwing rocks and other objects at the police building.
There were also reports of shooting in the area, he added.
While one group stayed at the police department, a second crowd was seen at the Shingle Creek Mall, where about 20 businesses were robbed, according to Harrington.
Most of the people in the police department later dispersed, he added.
Two people were arrested, Gannon said.
Harrington also mentioned that authorities will maintain a strong presence in the area in the coming days.
The curfews established for this Monday go from 7 pm to 6 am A planned vigil at the place of Daunte Wright's death was also retrograded to comply with the curfew.
"You will see a wide variety of National Guard, state and local police departments working together over the next two to three days," Harrington added.
CNN's Peter Nickeas, Holly Yan, Jessica Schneider, Jessica Jordan, Christina Carrega, David Close, Carma Hassan, Shawn Nottingham Brad Parks, Joe Sutton, Eric Fiegel, and Alta Spells contributed to this report.
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