Day 3 of jury selection begins in the trial of Kim Potter

Trial Proceedings of Kim Potter: Streaming while court is in session

MINNEAPOLIS — As of Wednesday, prosecutors and attorneys for the suburban Minneapolis police officer charged in Daunte Wright’s shooting death have seated nine of the 14 jurors needed for her trial. Jury selection continues Thursday in the trial of former Brooklyn Center police officer Kim Potter with five more seats left to fill. Four jurors were seated on Tuesday and five jurors were seated Wednesday.

After two days, the state has zero peremptory challenges left while the defense has three.

Potter faces first-degree and second-degree manslaughter in Daunte Wright’s April 11 death. Potter, who is white, is charged with shooting of Wright, a 20-year-old Black motorist, following a traffic stop in Brooklyn Center. Potter has said she meant to use her Taser on Wright when he pulled away from officers, but that she shot him with her handgun by mistake.

Jury selection started a little late Thursday after Judge Regina Chu and attorneys from both sides met behind closed doors. The panel of seven jurors didn’t get into the courtroom until 9:33 a.m. and then had to be sworn in and have the process explained to them by Chu.

Individual questioning finally got underway at 9:57 a.m. with potential juror No. 33. The man said Daunte Wright reminds him of the students he teaches, making it hard for him to set aside his sympathies and biases. Assistant Attorney General Matthew Frank to ask a couple questions. After brief sidebar, Chu excuses the potential juror from the case for cause.