Daunte Wright Died Just 11 Miles From Where George Floyd Was Killed

A Black man died after a confrontation with police in the Minneapolis area on Sunday night, approximately 11 miles away from where George Floyd was killed while in custody of the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) in May last year.

The incident unfolded in the city of Brooklyn Center at around 2 p.m. ET on Sunday, when a vehicle was stopped over an alleged traffic violation.

According to the Brooklyn Center Police Department, after pulling the vehicle over, officers realized the driver had an outstanding warrant. As they tried to take the driver into custody, he returned to the vehicle, prompting one of the officers to open fire.

"The vehicle traveled several blocks before striking another vehicle," a police statement read. It added a police officer was also hospitalized as was a female passenger, who sustained non-life-threatening injuries. The shooting is currently under investigation from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.

"One officer discharged their firearm, striking the driver," the statement said. "The vehicle then traveled several blocks before striking another vehicle."

Family members at the scene identified the victim as 20-year-old Daunte Wright. Wright's mother, Katie Wright, told local NBC-affiliate KARE 11 that her son had called her shortly after being pulled over and heard the officers asking him to get out of the car.

"A minute later, I called and his girlfriend answered, who was the passenger in the car, and said that he'd been shot and she put it on the driver's side, and my son was laying there lifeless," she said.

A city of about 30,000 people in Hennepin County, Minnesota, Brooklyn Center is located on the northwest border of Minneapolis.

According to the police release, the incident unfolded near the 6300 block of Orchard Avenue, which is approximately 11 miles north of the south Minneapolis location where Floyd died while in police custody in Minneapolis on May 25 last year after being arrested on suspicion of passing a counterfeit $20 bill.

His arrest was caught on camera by a bystander, whose video showed officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on Floyd's neck for almost nine minutes.

Chauvin is currently on trial in Minneapolis for Floyd's death and has denied charges of second- and third-degree murder.

He and the three other MPD officers involved in Floyd's arrest—Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng and Thou Thao—were all fired in the aftermath of the incident.

Lane, Kueng and Thao will stand trial later this year after being charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter.

In scenes reminiscent of the global protests sparked by Floyd's killing, demonstrators took to the streets in Brooklyn Center after news of Wright's death first emerged.

A protest that began as non-violent became increasingly tense as hundreds of demonstartors clashed with the police around the Brooklyn Center Police Department Headquarters.

Late on Sunday night, police officers deployed teargas to disperse the crowd and videos posted on Facebook showed protesters jumping on police cars.

Brooklyn Center Mayor Mike Elliott urged protesters "to be peaceful and that peaceful protesters are not dealt with with force", while Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said the state was mourning the life of another Black man.

"I am closely monitoring the situation in Brooklyn Center," he tweeted.

"Gwen and I are praying for Daunte Wright's family as our state mourns another life of a Black man taken by law enforcement."