Who is Regina Chu? Judge in Kim Potter case slammed over empathy plea as ex-cop sentenced to two years for Daunte Wright murder

Former police officer Kim Potter has been sentenced to two years in prison for the fatal shooting of 20-year-old African-American man Daunte Wright during a traffic stop arrest in Minnesota last year.

The officer was initially charged with first- and second-degree manslaughter, but Hennepin County District Court Judge Regina Chu gave the defendant a lighter sentence based on an empathy plea on Friday, February 17, 2022.

The maximum sentence for first-degree manslaughter is 15 years and second-degree manslaughter is 10 years. Judges in Minnesota usually follow seven and four years of jail time for first and second-degree manslaughter, respectively.

However, Potter will only be serving 16 months (two-thirds of her sentence) behind bars and eight months (one-third) of the same on supervised release. She has already served 58 years in prison, which will also be added to her credit.

Judge Chu mentioned that the officer was only sentenced for first-degree manslaughter as second-degree is a lesser charge of the same nature. She also dubbed the offense a “tragic mistake” and said her crime was not intentional.

The hearing disappointed several and many took to social media to call out Judge Chu for her “significant downward” ruling of Kim Potter’s punishment.

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Everything to know about Judge Regina Chu

Judge Regina Chu is the judge overseeing the highly-publicized Kim Potter trial. She was appointed to her position by Governor Jesse Ventura on July 22, 2002, and elected three times in 2004, 2010 and 2016, respectively.

According to Minnesota Courts, the judge graduated with a B.A. cum laude from the University of Minnesota and earned her J.D. cum laude from William Mitchell College of Law. She completed her undergrad in 1975 and later graduated from law school in 1980.

As per Ballotpedia, Chu began her career as a law clerk in Hennepin County in 1977 before taking up the same role in the Minnesota Supreme Court in 1980. She was appointed special assistant attorney general to the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office.

The judge then worked as an attorney and became a Bassford, Lockhart, Truesdell & Briggs firm partner between 1985 and 1993. She also served as the attorney and partner of Wilson & Chu from 1993 to 1996.

In 1997, Chu became a solo attorney under Regina M. Chu, P.A. from 1997 until her judicial appointment in 2002. She also serves as a board member for Asian Women United of Minnesota.

Chu is even a member of the Hennepin County Pro Bono Project Committee, the Civil Litigation Section Council, and the Minnesota District Judges Civil Jury Instruction Guides Committee.

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Twitter calls out Judge Chu for Kim Potter verdict

On Friday, Kim Potter trial judge Regina Chu announced a diminished two-year sentence for the police officer. The judge said Potter deserved a lesser sentence than what was sought by prosecutors as she tried to use her taser instead of a gun during the fatal shooting of Daunte Wright.

Chu mentioned that Potter was set to serve jail time for the “harm she inflicted" on the victim’s family but did not deserve to spend seven years in prison:

"This is a cop who made a tragic mistake. She drew her firearm thinking it was a Taser and ended up killing a young man. She never intended to hurt anyone. Her conduct cries out for a sentence significantly below the guidelines."

When prosecutors claimed aggravating factors in the case, Chu mentioned that the state failed to prove the aggravating factors. The judge also noted that she received "hundreds of hundreds" of empathy letters that declared Potter "a woman who touched many people in a good way."

Following the verdict, Judge Regina Chu was slammed on social media for granting an empathy plea to Kim Potter and announcing a potentially lesser sentence for the officer:

During the hearing, Judge Chu had already mentioned that her ruling would be deemed unpopular. She also said that it was a “challenging” case and she had to make one of the hardest decisions of her career:

“I recognize there will be those who disagree with the sentence, that I granted is a significant downward departure, does not in any way diminish Daunte Wright’s life. His life mattered. This is one of the saddest cases that I’ve had in my 20 years on the bench.”

Ahead of the ruling, Daunte Wright’s mother Katie Wright, said she and her family will never forgive Kim Potter for her actions. The latter also apologized to the victim’s mother while speaking in court and said her heart is broken for everyone affected by the shooting.

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What did Kim Potter do?

Kim Potter killed Daunte Wright after mistaking a handgun with a taser during a traffic stop last year (Image via Hennepin County Sheriff's Office)

On April 11, 2021, Kim Potter pulled over Daunte Wright at a traffic stop near Minneapolis after allegedly seeing an air freshener hanging out of his rearview mirror. Other officers present at the scene also noted that Wright’s car had expired license plate tabs.

During the ongoing investigation, officers discovered an active arrest warrant against Wright for failing to appear in court on a previous weapons violation charge and escaping from police the previous summer.

As trainee officer Anthony Luckey asked Wright to exit his car, the latter allegedly attempted to pull away and resist arrest. This prompted Kim Potter to issue a taser warning against the man. However, she mistook the handgun in place of the taser and fired towards Wright during the brief scuffle.

Wright was struck on the left side, with a single bullet piercing his heart and left lung. His car reportedly tumbled several blocks following the attack and crashed into another vehicle, leaving the victim dead on the spot.