The head of Minnesota’s largest police union believes Daunte Wright was partly responsible for his own death.

On Wednesday (April 14), Brian Peters — executive director of the Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association — sat with news, sports and talk station WCCO, and shared his “unpopular” opinion about the fatal encounter between Wright and the officer who killed him.

“This is going to be an unpopular statement,” Brian Peters said. “Daunte Wright, if he would have just complied. He was told he was under arrest. They were arresting him on a warrant for weapons. He set off a chain of events that unfortunately led to his death.”

“I’m not excusing it,” Peters continued. “But what we’re seeing in policing these days is that non-compliance by the public.”

As previously reported by REVOLT, Wright — a 20-year-old Black man — was shot and killed after officers pulled him over for an expired license plate and the air fresheners hanging from his mirror — a violation of Minnesota law. He exited the vehicle, but when officers attempted to arrest him for outstanding warrants, he went right back in and was fatally shot. Officer Kim Potter — the 26-year veteran who pulled the trigger — later explained it was an “accidental discharge” as she believed she was using her taser gun.

The shooting sparked protests across the state of Minnesota and prompted Brooklyn Center Police Chief Tim Gannon and Potter to resign from their positions. Potter was later arrested and released from Hennepin County Jail on $100,000 bail. She now faces charges of second-degree manslaughter in connection with Wright’s death. If convicted, she can serve up to 10 years in prison and may be required to pay a $20,000 fine.

According to the Wright family’s attorney, Jeffrey Storms, the 20-year-old’s relatives “believe that this charge is obviously a good initial step toward trying to get justice” but acknowledge that “there ultimately is no such thing as whole justice in this case because the family can’t have their loved one back.”