Day 3, Jury Selection Nears Completion in Potter Trial
A total of 12 jurors and two alternates are needed for the trial of Kim Potter, the former Brooklyn Center officer charged with first- and second-degree manslaughter in the death of Daunte Wright during a traffic stop last April. As of late Thursday afternoon, 11 jurors have been seated – five men and six women. Eight of the jurors are white, two Asian and one Black.
Here’s a look at the jurors added so far:
Thursday:
- Juror #48 – Woman, white, 40s. Worked/s in patent law, former IT project manager, grew up on farm in another state.
Wednesday:
- Juror #21 – Man, white, 40s. Juror noted that he doesn’t “condone” people fleeing police. Juror says he can put that view aside to weigh case fairly and openly.
- Juror #22 – Man, white, appears to be 50s. Juror on questionnaire said that he had a “neutral” impression of Potter and Wright because he didn’t know much about the case. He also wrote that Potter “possibly made an error” based on video clip he saw on the news when incident first happened.
- Juror #17 – Woman, white, 20s to 30s. Felt protests after negatively affected the community, did not agree with the “defund” the police movement. “You are always going to need police officers,” she said. Said she could decide the case “on just the evidence” and leave outside views behind.
- Juror #19 – Woman, Black, 30s. Teacher, owns a Taser, victim of robbery 20 years ago. Lives in/near Brooklyn Center and near shopping mall that was looted. Strongly disagreed with statement that police shouldn’t face scrutiny because of their dangerous jobs. But she said it wouldn’t affect how she would weigh the Potter case.
- Juror #26 – Woman, Asian, possibly 20s. Brother in the Marines. Said she had “some concerns” about how the verdict might play with her opinionated relatives, but said she believed she could put that aside.
Tuesday:
- Juror #7 – Man, white, 29 years old, bass player in rock band, operational manager at Target.
- Juror #6 – Woman, white, late 50s or early 60s, background as a teacher. Expressed negative views of both Kim Potter and Daunte Wright on her questionnaire. She is anti-gun. Is concerned about seeing graphic images. “When I first heard about this, my reaction was ‘how can this happen?’” she said. “And that’s still where I’m at. And this trial maybe could clarify.”
Juror #2 – Man, white, late 30s or early 40s. Expressed that Blue Lives Matter is counter to Black Lives Matter and didn’t think it was fair representation of police. Believes “defund” the police sends a negative message. Doesn’t believe in getting rid of police, but did say changes needed to be made. - Juror #11 – Woman, Asian, 40s. Has a brother who was a Marine. She had a female friend who was fatally stabbed five years ago in Minneapolis.
