Former officer Kim Potter on trial for Daunte Wright's death

The mother of Daunte Wright was among the witnesses called to take the stand Wednesday in the trial of former police officer Kim Potter, who stands accused of second-degree manslaughter.

Here's what happened today in court:

The trial has adjourned for the day. The trial will resume Thursday at 9 a.m. local time.

The trial of former police officer Kim Potter has adjourned for the day. The trial will resume Thursday at 9 a.m. local time.

Potter has been charged with second-degree manslaughter in the death of Daunte Wright, according to a news release from Washington County Attorney Pete Orput's office.

The jury was shown body camera footage from officer Anthony Luckey and from the patrol car showing Luckey, and former police officer Kim Potter, attempting to arrest Daunte Wright in April 2021.

Luckey can be seen talking to Wright next to his driver-side window while Potter stands near the right back fender.

After returning to their patrol car, Luckey can be heard saying he smelled marijuana coming from Wright's car. The pair also determine that there is a warrant out for Wright's arrest.

When the pair approach the car again and attempt to arrest Wright, a struggle ensued.

Potter can be heard saying "I'll tase ya," she said before shooting Wright.

"Oh my God," Potter added while crying. Potter continued to yell, "Oh my God," numerous times while lying face down on the grass, according to body camera footage.

Officer Anthony Luckey resumed testimony this afternoon after a break. He told the jury about his attempt to arrest Daunte Wright prior to the shooting.

Luckey said that he approached Daunte Wright's car a second time, after pulling him over, and asked him to step out of the vehicle. He said that the officers on the scene, including the defendant Kim Potter, informed Wright that he was under arrest for an outstanding warrant. Luckey then asked him to put his hands behind his back. When he placed the left handcuff on his wrist Wright "jerked his arm back."

"When he starts to tense up I told him 'don't do it bro,'" Luckey testified.

Luckey said that Wright looked to the right, and Potter approached them and tried to grab his arm. He said Wright broke free and "got back into the vehicle."

Luckey said he grabbed Wright's head and neck and attempted to stop him from getting into the vehicle. But Wright was able to put himself into the driver's seat and grab the steering wheel. Potter ran to Luckey's left to try to assist him in getting Wright out of the car, Luckey said.

He said that another officer, Sgt. Mychal Johnson, put his hand on the gear shift in the car. But that's all he could see.

Luckey said that Wright was trying to "operate" the car to "drive away."

"I heard Officer Potter say 'I'm going to tase you,'" he said, while he was trying to "gain control of Daunte."

Luckey said he heard Potter say "I'm going to tase you" a second time, then "Taser, Taser, Taser."

"That's when I heard a bang," Luckey said, adding, "It was a firearm."

He said he saw a flash, some smoke, and a gun. He said when the shot went off he was hit in the face with a "projectile."

Luckey's testimony is ongoing.

Officer Anthony Luckey testified that after he pulled Daunte Wright over he approached the vehicle and told him that he stopped him for an illegal air freshener hanging from his rearview mirror.

Luckey, who works for the Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, police department, said he also asked Wright about the expired registration on his car. Wright told the officer that it was a new car that he just bought from his brother and he was in the process of getting updated tags for the vehicle.

Luckey said that he then asked him for his license and Wright told him he didn't have one. The officer said that he noticed the "odor of marijuana" coming from the car and a "marijuana residue" on the center console of the car.

He said that Wright was respectful of him while the officer questioned him.

Luckey then returned to his squad car and ran Wright's information through a state identification system. The officer said that when he ran the information it showed Wright had an outstanding warrant for a "gross misdemeanor weapons charge" and an "order of protection for a female."

The court is now taking a 20-minute break. The trial will resume with Luckey's testimony.

The state called Officer Anthony Luckey to testify on Wednesday at the trial of former officer Kim Potter.

He started working at the Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, police department in February 2021, he said. On April 11, he was a trainee and was working with Potter during the stop of Daunte Wright's car.

Luckey said that Potter had acted as his field training officer "about four" times before.

He said that while on patrol he encountered Wright's Buick and observed him making a left turn while signaling that he was going to turn right. Luckey then began following Wright and ran the license plate on his vehicle. The registration came back expired, he testified. He said he also observed an air freshener hanging from Wright's rearview mirror, which he testified was against the law. At that point, he decided to stop the car.

Luckey's direct testimony is ongoing.

The jury was shown body camera footage from April 2021 showing an emotional Katie Bryant, mother of Daunte Wright, talking to police officers following the shooting.

"I was here, I watched it," she continued in the footage.

Bryant can be seen crying hysterically while another officer sits on a short wall next to her.

The prosecution's first witness was Katie Bryant, mother of Daunte Wright. She began her testimony by describing what the family was doing earlier in the day on the day of the shooting

Bryant said that on the morning of April 11, 2021, she was watching Wright's 1-year-old son.

"I had Daunte Jr. He stayed the night. It was just an average day. And we woke up, he had his favorite chocolate chip pancakes and he was eating breakfast, watching Coco Melon, and it was time for his nap that was around 12 something that afternoon," Bryant said. 

She said that Wright came home in the afternoon and asked her for $50 because he wanted to go get a car wash and he said he needed gas. 

"And I told him to be really quiet, take it out of my purse. So he took it out of the purse. He leaned over the bed, he gave Daunte Jr. a kiss goodbye," she said.

Bryant continued: "I yelled at him again, please don't wake him up, I just got him asleep. Then he left. I told him to make sure he locks the door on the way out." 

All Daunte Wright "had to do was surrender," Minnesota defense attorney Paul Engh said in his opening statement in Kimberly Potter's trial today.

"All he has to do is stop and he'd be with us," Engh added.

The defense attorney's opening statement centered on Potter attempting to use a Taser on Wright in order to protect her partner, Sgt. Mychal Johnson, because he was inside Wright's car and would be injured if Wright drove off.  

Potter, 49, wanted to become a police officer at an early age, her attorney said.

Officer Anthony Luckey, who Potter was training at the time of the shooting, made the decision to pull over Wright after he signaled incorrectly, had expired license plate tabs, and a tree-shaped air freshener hanging from his rearview window, according to Engh, but "this case isn’t about tabs, it‘s not about Christmas trees [air fresheners]."  

The defense attorney said Luckey smelled marijuana in Wright's car after pulling him over, and the 20-year-old was unable to produce a license or insurance for the vehicle he was driving.

"So we've got some flags here going on. It's not anything about the tabs any longer. It's about someone who shouldn't be driving a car at all," Engh said.

Officers were doing "legitimate police work" attempting to arrest Wright and identify the passenger in Wright's vehicle to ensure her safety, Engh said.

Engh banged on the table while making his points. As part of his opening statement, the attorney previewed the witnesses the defense plans to call.

"Ms. Potter's good name has been besmirched by this allegation, which is not true, and by the press coverage, which has been slanted, and we seek to reclaim it and reclaim it we will," Engh said in his opening statement.