ABC13 EXCLUSIVE: Retired deputy sheriff shares anger over her great-grandson's killing

Wednesday, April 14, 2021
Retired deputy shares anger over great-grandson's killing
"You don't have the authority to take lives like that," said Elaine Walls, Daunte's great-grandmother, who spoke exclusively with ABC13 on Tuesday.

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- As protests continue after the killing of Daunte Wright, his family in Houston is also furious.

"You may have authority, but you don't have the authority to take lives like that," said Elaine Walls, Daunte's great-grandmother, who spoke exclusively with ABC13 on Tuesday.

Wright was shot in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, on Sunday. He was killed after police said a white officer accidentally reached for her handgun instead of a taser.

READ MORE: Officer who shot Daunte Wright, Brooklyn Center police chief resign

"My nephew was a good kid, I'm telling you," said Daunte's uncle, Calvin Walls, who also spoke with ABC13.

WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW BELOW

The great grandmother of Daunte Wright, who was killed during a traffic stop by a Minnesota police officer, says she's been watching updates on her great-grandson and says it's heartbreaking. "I feel awful," she said. "I think that was terrible. I was a deputy sheriff for 28 years and I didn't want to kill nobody."

Brooklyn Center Police said Wright was pulled over for an expired registration.

"Nobody's mentioned it right through this whole case," said Calvin. "He got pulled over for what? For registration, right? It's the pandemic. He's the first person pulled over for registration. Are we right or wrong? And he died for it."

Police body camera video shows Wright complying outside of his car with his hands behind his back before his uncle said it's clear he got scared when a second officer grabbed his arm. Wright is then seen rushing back into his car.

Brooklyn Center police said the officer who fatally shot Daunte Wright meant to draw their Taser but instead drew their handgun and fired once during a traffic stop.

"You're fixing to arrest him, you've got handcuffs in your hands and everything, but instead of you using these handcuffs in your right hand, you start doing garbage with your left hand and she comes over and reaches in his elbow ... what is he supposed to think?" said Calvin, who became emotional during the interview.

That second officer, Kim Potter, who has since resigned from the force, is heard issuing a warning of a Taser, but instead pulls her gun and fires a single shot.

READ ALSO: EXPLAINER: How does an officer use a gun instead of a Taser?

The police department called it an accidental shooting, but for Wright's great-grandmother, who is a retired sheriff's deputy from Chicago, there is no explanation that will ever ease the pain of losing her great-grandson, especially at the hands of another law enforcement officer.

"I was a deputy sheriff for 28 years," she said. "You don't mistake a gun for a Taser. You know how it feels."

Potter and the Brooklyn Center Police Chief have both resigned in the wake of the shooting.

READ MORE: Officer who shot Daunte Wright, Brooklyn Center police chief resign

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.