Nathan Layne

(Reuters) – Jurors started their fourth day in the manslaughter case against Kimberly Potter. She is a former Minnesota officer who mistakenly took her Taser for her handgun and shot Daunte Wright, a Black motorist, during a traffic stop.

Following a 24 hour period of deliberation, the jury returned to work at Hennepin County Courthouse, Minneapolis, on Thursday morning at 8:40 AM CST (1440 GMT).

On Tuesday, the jury presented a question to judge suggesting that it is having trouble reaching consensus over whether Potter should be convicted or acquitted on two charges of manslaughter.

Jack Rice is a St. Paul-based criminal defense lawyer who was not directly involved in this case. He stated that he believes the most likely outcomes were a deadlocked jury, which would prompt the judge or jury to announce a mistrial.

Rice stated that “I lean towards a hanging jury at this stage, partly because it’s Day Four,” and added that he suspects there may be members of the jury who refuse to convict “this cop for making this error.”

The judge, Regina Chu, is presided over the trial. She told jurors that they wouldn’t be called in Friday night, Christmas Eve. This means they will return Monday morning if their work does not finish on Thursday.

Potter, age 49, pleaded guilty to the first- and second degree manslaughter counts. These charges carry maximum sentences between 15 and 10 years. Potter stated that she mistakenly thought she was drawing her Taser. Wright was shot in the chest by Potter’s 9 mm pistol during a traffic stop.

Prosecutors alleged that Potter committed reckless acts and with “culpable negligent” by drawing the wrong gun. Defense argued that Wright killed himself resisting arrest and fleeing, and that Potter was entitled to use force.

Potter is white. The shooting of Wright caused protests in Brooklyn Center (a suburb of Minneapolis) for several nights. It was also criticized as another case of police brutality toward Black Americans.

The incident occurred just a few miles north of where Derek Chauvin, a white former Minneapolis police officer, was at the same time standing trial https://www.reuters.com/world/us/jurors-resume-deliberations-derek-chauvin-murder-trial-2021-04-20 in the case of George Floyd, a Black man whose 2020 death during an arrest set off racial justice protests in many U.S. cities. Chauvin was found guilty of murder.

(Reporting by Nathan Layne from Wilton, Connecticut; Editing By Alistair Bell