Ex-cop Kim Potter said she mistook her gun for her Taser when she shot Daunte Wright. Officers told the jury how she was trained to use the weapon.

• A Brooklyn Center police commander testified Tuesday about ex-cop Kim Potter's Taser training.
• Potter is being tried for manslaughter in the April shooting death of Daunte Wright.

A Brooklyn Center police commander explained the department's policy on how and when to use a Taser during Kim Potter's manslaughter trial on Tuesday.

The former Minnesota police officer is facing manslaughter charges for the shooting death of Daunte Wright during a traffic stop in April. Potter and her partner pulled Wright over for driving with an air freshener hanging from his rearview mirror, and learned that Wright had a warrant out for his arrest after they stopped his car.

Police body-camera footage shows that while Potter's partner tried to place Wright in handcuffs, Potter shot Wright in the chest as he tried to sit down in the driver's seat. The footage shows Potter shouting, "Taser! Taser! Taser!" before she shot Wright; Potter later said she intended to grab her Taser instead of her gun.

Brooklyn Center Police Commander Garrett Flesland took the witness stand on Tuesday to explain the department's policies on when to use a Taser.

The department first started using Tasers in 2002, according to Flesland. Prosecutors displayed documents that showed Potter had been certified on how to use a Taser in 2002, then was recertified in 2005, 2007, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2019, receiving perfect scores each time.

Officers are instructed to carry their Taser on their non-dominant side, and there are two different ways officers can holster their Tasers, Flesland explained. The first is "cross draw," meaning that the handle of the Taser is pointed to the front of the body, making it easier to grab the weapon with the dominant hand. The second is "reaction draw," meaning that the handle of the Taser is pointed toward the back of the body, making it easier to grab with the non-dominant hand.

Flesland testified that he carries his Taser on his non-dominant side, in the "cross draw" position. Prosecutors showed the jury five still photos from body-camera footage, including from the day Potter shot Wright, that showed the former officer carrying her Taser on her non-dominant side, holstered in the "reaction draw" position.

Flesland testified that, according to BCPD policy, officers are only to use Tasers "to control a violent or potentially violent individual while minimizing the risk of serious injury." Sgt. Mike Peterson, who is in charge of training BCPD officers, also testified Tuesday that officers are trained not to tase someone who is operating a vehicle.

Prosecutors also showed the jury a warning that comes from the manufacturer of Tasers, which says not to use the weapon on someone operating a vehicle. Potter's defense has said that she needed to tase Wright to keep him from driving away, because Sgt. Mychal Johnson was leaning into the car and could have been injured.

After Potter shot Wright, his car traveled down the street and collided with another vehicle. Flesland testified that BCPD policy only allows officers to shoot at a moving vehicle when they believe there's no other way to stop it, and even then the commander said it's "rarely effective."

Defense attorney Earl Gray asked Flesland on cross-examination if it would be appropriate to use lethal force if "another officer is in the front seat, laying over the passenger, trying to stop this guy from going, and he is ignoring the warnings 'Taser! Taser!'"

"Potentially, yes," Flesland responded, "but I wasn't there."