Daunte Wright protests: Several people arrested as activists rally outside Minnesota police station
Protesters gathered for the sixth straight night outside the Brooklyn Center, Minn., police station Friday night to rally against the police killing of Daunte Wright.
Cops had set up two fences around the station prior to Friday’s demonstrations, and stayed inside the perimeter for most of the day and into night, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported. Around 10 p.m., after two orders to disperse, they busted out and began arresting people.
Other authorities surrounding the protest helped corral demonstrators and detain them, according to the Star Tribune. The crowd was estimated from “several hundred” to 1,000 people prior to dispersal order and corresponding arrests.
Kim Potter, a Brooklyn Center police officer, is charged with second-degree manslaughter for fatally shooting Wright, a 20-year-old Black man, during a traffic stop Sunday afternoon. Potter resigned Tuesday.
In body-camera video, Potter is seen aiming her gun at Wright and shouting, “Taser! Taser! Taser!” as Wright tries to get back into his vehicle. She then fires once and says, “S--t, I just shot him.”
The Brooklyn Center police station has been the center of protests following Wright’s killing, and people gathered Saturday afternoon to commiserate and celebrate his life, the Star Tribune reported.
As night fell, some people threw items over the fences at police, according to the Star Tribune. Cops responded with several stun grenades.
At one point, the outer fence was breached, according to Operation Safety Net, the Twin Cities task force created to secure the region during former cop Derek Chauvin’s trial in the killing of George Floyd. Cops restored the perimeter and ordered people to leave shortly after.
The exact number of arrests was unclear Friday night. While dozens of people were detained at demonstrations earlier in the week, no one was arrested Thursday night, and officials did not place a curfew on the city prior to Friday’s gatherings.
