The Legalities in Kim Potter's Case

Finally, a competent observer sets out the legal issues in the Kim Potter case.

 ...The first degree manslaughter count requires that Potter caused another’s death “in committing or attempting to commit a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor offense with such force and violence that death of or great bodily harm to any person was reasonably foreseeable…” But Potter was not committing or attempting to commit a misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor, she was executing a lawful arrest of a criminal. There was a similar issue in the Derek Chauvin case.

Further, she did not act with “such force or violence” that death or great bodily harm was foreseeable. On the contrary, what was foreseeable to her when she tried to pull her taser was minor injury at worst.

The second degree manslaughter charge requires that death be caused “by the person’s culpable negligence whereby the person creates an unreasonable risk, and consciously takes chances of causing death or great bodily harm to another.” There was no evidence that Potter “consciously” took the chance of “causing death” to Daunte Wright. Consciously, she was trying to use her taser, which would not have killed or seriously injured Wright....

Kim Potter killed the guy; we cannot get around that.  A charge of involuntary manslaughter would have been appropriate, and a suspended sentence is indicated by MY lights on the case.  There was no intent to kill, nor even to maim.  A claim of "intentional" is lying.  But then, Keith Ellison.......

In the future, calling 9-1-1 in metro areas of Minnesota will be rolling the dice.  You may--or may not--get assistance.

Too bad, all around.