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Medical examiner says Daunte Wright's cause of death was a gunshot to the chest, rules it a homicide

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Police officers work behind police tape blocking a street near the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, Thursday, July 2, 2015. Associated Press/Susan Walsh
  • The Hennepin County Medical Examiner said on Monday that Daunte Wright's cause of death was a gunshot wound to the chest.

  • The manner of death was ruled a homicide, though that classification is "not a legal determination of culpability or intent."

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The Hennepin County Medical Examiner said on Monday that Daunte Wright was killed by a gunshot wound to the chest, ruling his death a "homicide."

Wright, a 20-year-old Black man, was shot Sunday afternoon by a police officer during a traffic stop in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. The city is just outside Minneapolis, where jurors are hearing testimony in the murder trial of former police officer Derek Chauvin, who is charged with killing George Floyd last May.

In its report, the medical examiner's office noted that it's determination of a manner of death "is not a legal determination of culpability or intent."

Wright was killed after a struggle with police, who said he had an outstanding arrest warrant. But Brooklyn Center Police Chief Tim Gannon insisted Monday that law enforcement did not intend to kill him. Rather, the officer who shot him intended to reach for the less-lethal Taser.

In body camera footage from the incident, an officer can be heard yelling "Taser! Taser! Taser!" after Wright gets back in the driver's seat of his car in an apparent effort to drive off. They can be heard stating, "Holy s---. I just shot him."

This story is developing. Check back for updates.

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