The passenger who was in Daunte Wright's vehicle when he was killed during a routine traffic stop last year is suing the city of Brooklyn Center and ex-officer Kim Potter, who fired the fatal shot.
Alayna Albrecht-Payton, 21, of St. Paul, is seeking at least $150,000 in damages in the April 11, 2021, confrontation. Potter claimed she mistook her firearm as a Taser and shot Wright, whose vehicle then accelerated and crashed into another SUV. The lawsuit says Albrecht-Payton was physically injured in the crash and still suffers from PTSD after watching Wright die from Potter's unlawful use of a firearm.
Potter later was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to a two-year prison term in June. The city of Brooklyn Center agreed to pay a $3.25 million settlement to Wright's family.
"Albrecht-Payton was a blameless witness to a horribly traumatic event, which a lot of people heard her testify to in the felony trial. And she has suffered some significant and permanent injuries, including the broken jaw and the cuts, and just scared inside and out from this event," her attorney Kathryn Bennett said in a phone interview Monday.
The law firm representing Brooklyn Center, listed as Kennedy and Graven Chartered, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Bloomington attorney Jason Hiveley, who is representing Potter, did not return calls for comment.
"Potter endangered Alayna's safety— and that of a fellow Brooklyn Center police officer assisting with the traffic stop — when she shot Daunte mere inches away from Alayna and the other officer," the lawsuit said.
Albrecht-Payton "bore the brunt of the impact" when Wright's vehicle crashed into the SUV after the shooting.
"Despite her own injuries, Alayna spent the final moments of Daunte's life desperately trying to save him as he gasped for air," the lawsuit states. Rather than receive help, responding officers held Albrecht-Payton at gunpoint and placed her in handcuffs."
Potter did not render aid to Albrecht-Payton or Wright, thereby neglecting her duty as well as failing to communicate with other officers, the lawsuit said.
"Potter worried only about the consequences to herself. She walked over to the curb, sat down and started wailing. She drew her fellow officers' attention to herself and away from responding to the crisis she created. Officer [Anthony] Luckey patted her back as she lay face down on the grass, expressing her concern that she was 'going to prison.' "
Albrecht-Payton underwent surgery for her broken jaw the week after the shooting and had four 8-mm screws wire her mouth shut. She struggles to adjust her now-slanted jaw and her teeth are not aligned, the suit says.
In the days after the shooting, she lost her appetite and was severely malnourished. About two weeks later, she became so delirious from stress and trauma that she called 911.
"She believed someone was outside the house shooting at her that morning. Her mother reported that Alayna had not been eating or drinking for the last four days," the lawsuit states.
The bodily and mental harm she suffered "are a direct and foreseeable consequence of Potter's negligent conduct." The city of Brooklyn Center is liable for Potter's conduct as an officer for the city's Police Department at the time she shot and killed Wright, the suit said.
The lawsuit states that Albrecht-Payton replays the images from the shooting in her head every day. "She had flashbacks and nightmares about Daunte's death. The bad dreams came to her every night. They were vivid—like hallucinations," the lawsuit said.
