Houston relatives of Duante Wright said the officer that shot him should have been charged with murder.
Elaine Walls is mourning the death of her maternal great-grandson Daunte Wright. Walls said it’s been a while since he last visited her in Texas. Now, Walls is planning to fly to Minnesota to support family members there.
“I will miss him. We all will miss him,” Walls said.
The 20-year-old Black Minnesota man was fatally shot during a traffic stop Sunday by former Brooklyn Center police officer Kim Potter. Potter, who has since resigned, has been booked in jail and charged with second-degree manslaughter for Daunte’s death.
“I just think she should be charged with murder,” said Walls. “You know? That was murder. She’s all in the car with him and shot him straight in the chest. That’s murder.”
Walls is a retired deputy. She worked in Cook County, Illinois up until 2005. Walls says her daughter was also a deputy and now works for the Houston Police Department. Walls said it’s ironic she lost her great-grandson at the hands of police, being that they’re a law enforcement family. Walls said Daunte didn’t deserve to die over a traffic stop.
“Stopped him for what?” Walls asked. “Something hanging in the car, and it ends up being a killing?”
Walls said despite the misdemeanor on his record, her great-grandson was a loving person.
“Honor him as a sweet, loving child. He had a family, he wasn’t just out there in the streets,” she said.