Kim Potter Trial: Court Denies State's Motion To Exclude Expert Witness' Testimony On 'Action Error'
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A motion from the state to exclude an expert witness' testimony for Kim Potter's defense has been denied by the court.
According to Hennepin County court documents, the state motioned in early October to exclude Dr. Laurence Miller's testimony at the trial, which is scheduled for the end of the month.
Potter, a former Brooklyn Center police officer, is charged with two counts of manslaughter in connection to the death of 20-year-old Daunte Wright in April. The former Brooklyn Center police chief has said he believes Potter meant to use her Taser on Wright instead of her handgun. Body camera video shows her shouting "Taser!" multiple times before firing.
Court documents show that the defense intends to call Miller as an expert witness to testify about "action error" and "slip and capture error" psychological phenomena. Miller's expert report says that "action error" is when a person means to do something but automatically does something else. Miller says this can happen when an individual is under conditions of stress. Meanwhile, Miller says "slip and capture error" can include "weapons confusion."
The state motioned to exclude the testimony by arguing that it would not be relevant or helpful to the jury.
While the judge denied the state's motion, Miller will not be permitted to testify whether Potter actually experienced these psychological phenomena when she shot and killed Wright.