Daunte Wright was working on 'straightening his life out' for his son, his family told Insider. Then he was killed by police.

Daunte Wright was deeply affected by the death of George Floyd. Like many Black Americans, the 20-year-old from Minnesota was uncomfortably familiar with the regular threat of police violence. 

All the more so because Floyd had hailed from the same community. In fact, Floyd's girlfriend, Courteney Ross,  taught Wright at high school.

"[George Floyd's death] tore him apart. He started to get really scared of the police after that," Wright's aunt, Kelly Bryant, told Insider.

Read more: Derek Chauvin's trial is testing the stress levels of Black Americans. Here's what leaders and allies can do to help.

But almost a year after Floyd was killed at the hands of police, Wright suffered the same fate. 

The 20-year-old father was fatally shot at a traffic stop in Brooklyn Center, just 11 miles from where Floyd had been killed, inspiring a new wave of protests reverberating with the anger and sense of injustice of those that took place last summer across America.

'He had a big heart'

Wright, who was born in Hudson, Wisconsin, in October 2000, was part of a large but tight-knit family. 

His mother, Katie Wright, told Good Morning America this week that he was a grandson, nephew, uncle, and brother who could "light up the room" with his smile.

"My son was an amazing, loving kid," Katie said during the interview. "He had a big heart."

Wright, one of six children, was described as caring and loyal. The 20-year-old would regularly check in on his friends and family, often cracking jokes to make them laugh during difficult times. 

He was voted "class clown in high school," and one close friend recently told BuzzFeed that he had an infectious laugh that always lifted spirits.

While not all of Wright's extended family members lived in the same state, they made sure to see each other during important holidays. 

One of his cousins, Mario Greer, told Buzzfeed News that July 4th was Wright's favorite holiday and the two would usually spend the day playfully shooting Roman candles at each other. "We're not gonna be able to do that no more," Greer said, according to Buzzfeed. 

Other cousins also posted tributes to Wright on social media. Alongside a picture of Wright and his son on her Facebook profile, one wrote: "You were such a great cousin. You didn't deserve this at all." 

New city, new challenges

But while he was a "fun, loving, and big-hearted" child, according to his family, Wright also faced challenges growing up and didn't always have a great childhood, his aunt said.

Bryant says part of the reason she believes Wright started to struggle was the family's move from Wisconsin to North Minneapolis when he was nine years old.

"Them relocating out of Wisconsin to North Minneapolis wasn't the best thing for him because everybody knows how North Minneapolis is. It's not a very good area to be raising children," she told Insider.

Bryant had once begged Wright to come and live with her in Wisconsin to "give him a better life," Insider's Yelena Dzhanova previously reported

For Wright, who had learning disabilities, the move to a new city and subsequently a new school was disruptive, and he reacted badly.

During his time in Minneapolis, he attended three different high schools — Edison High School, Patrick Henry High School, and Stadium View School — before dropping out two years ago, according to the Associated Press.

"I knew he was having problems at school," his aunt said. "I don't know if it was due to fighting… but I know that he was having difficulty at each of the schools."

Wright had big plans for the future

His eighth-grade basketball coach, Aaron Goff, knew Wright to be "a hothead." 

Goff told Insider that Wright was a skilled basketball player active in the Columbia Heights Basketball Association and was "very passionate about the sport." 

But, on occasion, Wright could become "emotional," Goff said.

Jeremy Deel, who also coached Wright and runs a nonprofit that helps fund participation in local sport for kids from low-income areas, once had to step in after Wright got into a fight.

"I had a sit-down conversation with him about how you react to people in these situations and keep yourself from getting into a situation that might count against you," Deel told Insider. "My interaction with him was very pleasant. He looked me in the eye and was very responsive."

Deel warned Wright that getting into fights could end his dreams of becoming a basketball star. Wright had ambitions of being an NBA player, his aunt said. 

But it wasn't just basketball Wright was passionate about. His former mentor and youth development specialist, Jonathan Mason, told AP that he was interested in fashion and opening up his own business. 

"He said, 'I want to be an NBA player, I want to be a fashion designer, I want to be a business owner,'" Mason told AP. "I said, 'If you grow up, you can be whatever you want to be.'"

But Wright dropped out of school and spent the last few months of his life working in retail and fast-food restaurants. He had planned to go back to school to get his GED, his father said, according to the Washington Post.

Becoming a father

Wright's ambitions became even more urgent after he became a father to his son, Daunte Jr., in July 2019.

Multiple people close to Wright said that he was an "amazing" young dad, who seemed to relish his role, AP reported. Wright's aunt said he "was doing what he could for his son … especially because [his son] was severely premature when he was born."

A former neighbor, Emily Newberg, told Insider that Wright helped her with yard work for a bit of extra money.

"I realized he was willing to do anything to be ready for the birth of his son...he was legitimately trying to do work for people to save money for his son," Newberg said.

Another friend told BuzzFeed News that Wright had big plans for the future and wanted to "prove to himself that he could make it out of Brooklyn Park, Minneapolis."

Unfortunately, this never happened.

On April 11, the 20-year-old was driving in his car with his girlfriend when he was pulled over for a traffic violation in Brooklyn Center. 

Bodycam footage showed Wright break free from officers and enter the driver's side of his vehicle. An officer identified as Kim Potter then drew her gun and shouted "Taser!" several times before Wright's vehicle began pulling away, and Potter exclaimed that she shot him, Insider's Tom Porter reported.

Warning: The following footage may be disturbing.

During the stop, the police reportedly found that there was a warrant outstanding against Wright.

This is true. According to court documents reviewed by Insider, Wright was charged with aggravated robbery in December 2019 and was accused of carrying a weapon without a permit and fleeing from police in the summer of 2020. 

A man who claimed to be a friend, Lord Anthony Lowry, told the Daily Mail this week that Wright had "been in trouble for a couple of years."

"He was still young-minded," Lowry added. "He didn't grow up yet. He had a long way to go."

According to his aunt, Wright had become dedicated to trying to better himself for the sake of his family. "He was trying to straighten his life out now because he did have a child," Bryant said.

Some of the family members who have since spoken out about Wright's legal history, which has been heavily featured in right-wing outlets in the last week, say that the criticism leveled against him distracts from what he was really like.

"People are trying to drag my nephew's name through the dirt," aunt Naisha Wright told CNN in an interview this week. "It don't mean nothing. He didn't deserve to die. My nephew was a damn good kid."

Bryant, his other aunt, told Insider that Wright was "far from an angel" but "still my nephew."

"I still love him no matter what he did wrong," she said. "He was just a kid."

Join the conversation about this story »