Police in Minnesota say the shooting of Daunte Wright happened because Officer Kim Potter mistakenly fired her gun instead of her Taser. Various outlets are digging into the subject, with the same general conclusion: The phenomenon is real, though it's rare. Coverage:
- 11 times: The Minneapolis Star Tribune has found 11 instances nationwide since 1999 in which a gun-Taser mix-up has been blamed in a police shooting. That includes at least three other fatalities in addition to Wright. The year 1999 was when a gun-shaped Taser, the M-26, came into vogue.
- How: By now, most departments—including the one in Brooklyn Center, where Wright was shot—require officers to carry Tasers on their weak-hand side, opposite of their gun. Tasers are generally lighter than guns and have a different feel, but officers have been known to mistakenly grab their handgun by mistake in the heat of a chaotic situation, per the AP.
- A theory: Bill Lewinski, described as an expert on police psychology and founder of the Force Science Institute, uses the phrase "slip and capture" to describe how officers might do the opposite of their intended action in moments of stress. "Their actions 'slip' and are 'captured' by a stronger response," per the AP. Officers typically train far more often on drawing their handguns than stun guns, and that training might take over. The story, however, notes that critics say there's no substantive science to back up this theory.
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