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Judge Regina Chu slammed for CRYING while sentencing Daunte Wright shooter Kim Potter to 2 years

'She never intended to hurt anyone. Her conduct cries out for a sentence significantly below the guidelines,' Regina Chu said while sentencing Kim Potter

Kim Potter, a former Minnesota police officer who fatally shot Daunte Wright during a traffic stop, was sentenced to two years in prison on Friday, February 18. Potter was found guilty of first- and second-degree manslaughter on December 23, 2021. Prosecutors had initially requested seven years and two months, but Potter's attorneys wanted a lesser sentence considering her lack of a prior criminal history and remorse for Wright's death.

Daunte Wright, 20, a biracial man who identified as Black, was shot dead by Potter on April 11, 2021, during a traffic stop. The incident took place during an attempted arrest for an outstanding arrest warrant in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. Police later said that Potter meant to use her taser, but used her gun accidentally instead, shooting Wright in the chest. Potter was subsequently arrested on April 14, charged with second-degree manslaughter, and booked into the Hennepin County Jail. She was later released on $100,000 bail. Back then, the shooting prompted widespread protests across Brooklyn Center.

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As per state law, Potter will now have to serve two-thirds of her sentence in prison or 16 months. She will be eligible for supervised release for the remaining third with good behavior. Hennepin County Judge Regina Chu called the sentence "an extremely difficult decision." Chu said that she took four reasons into account for incarceration -- retribution, incapacitation, deterrence and rehabilitation. She justified that in Potter's case, retribution would be the only purpose served. "There rightfully should be some accountability," she said.

Judge Regina Chu tears up for Kim Potter 

Chu seemed to tear up during Kim Potter's sentencing, quoting former president Barack Obama, saying, "Empathy is a quality of character that can change the world." "Officer Kimberly Potter was trying to do the right thing," Chu said, adding, "Of all the jobs in public service, police officers have the most difficult one." 

"They must make snap decisions under tense evolving and ever-changing circumstances," the judge said. "They risk their lives every single day. Chu continued, "Officer Potter made a mistake that ended tragically." "She never intended to hurt anyone. Her conduct cries out for a sentence significantly below the guidelines," she added.

Who is Regina Chu?

Regina M Chu, a Fourth Judicial District judge for Hennepin County, Minnesota, Fourth Judicial District judge for Hennepin County, Minnesota. She was elected to a full term in 2004, and was re-elected in 2010 and 2016.

Chu received a B.A. from the University of Minnesota in 1975 and a J.D. from the William Mitchell College of Law in 1980. Her legal career began in 1977 as a law clerk to Judge Barbeau of the Hennepin County District Court. She became a law clerk on the Minnesota Supreme Court in 1980 and assisted Justice Amdahl. She became a special assistant attorney general the following year, a position she served in through 1984 in the Minnesota Attorney General's Office.

Chu then went on to work as an attorney, and later a partner of the firm of Bassford, Lockhart, Truesdell & Briggs from 1985 to 1993. From 1993 to 1996, she was an attorney and partner of Wilson & Chu. She was then a solo attorney under the title Regina M. Chu, P.A. from 1997 until her judicial appointment in 2002.

'That was shameful'

Wright's father was upset with the light sentence and called it a "slap in the face", while Wright's mother, Katie Bryant, said it that it felt like the justice system "murdered" Daunte "all over again. Slamming Chu she said how she had poured her heart out in my victim impact statement which she rewrote over and over again but that did not get a response out of the judge but then when it came down to sentencing Kim Potter, Chu broke out in tears.

Chu has been slammed on social media for expressing empathy for the suspect instead of the victim. "Judge Regina Chu, who just delivered a mere 2-year sentence to Kim Potter, Daunte Wright's killer, is up there crying *for Kim Potter*. I've never seen this before. That was shameful," one user wrote. "Regina Chu... Wow. As a POC in a position of power & you teared up for some white women... You will be remembered as a coward," wrote another.

One user wrote, "Judge Regina Chu was obviously making a racial statement. Literally crying for the murderer. This was a deliberate act of contempt for Daunte Wright and his family. Judges like this who break the law think they're untouchable. That the public can't punish them", while another said, "Judge Regina Chu cried when she sentenced Kim Potter to a mere 2 yrs for murdering Duante Wright. She asked for empathy for the murderer. She never shed a tear for Duante or asked for empathy for his family." "I'm genuinely wondering what the hell she was getting emotional about did Judge Regina Chu kill somebody and not tell folks? Ain't no reason to cry over #KimPotter it has been told many times that ppl have an unconscious biased against black ppl," one user commented.