Daunte Wright’s former girlfriend has filed a lawsuit against the civil rights attorney who has pledged to bring justice to her child’s father’s name. The woman is not only suing the lawyer, but has named the deceased’s parents in the complaint, hoping to come to terms with money raised from various crowdfunding campaigns.
On Monday, Oct. 3, Chyna Whitaker filed a claim in the Fourth Judicial District Court in Hennepin County, Minnesota against Ben Crump, his law firm, Katie Bryant (Katie Wright), and Arbuey Wright, claiming they never turned over the money she raised for her son after his father, Daunte Wright, was killed by Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, police officer Kim Potter on Apr. 11, 2021.
According to the lawsuit obtained by Atlanta Black Star, Whitaker is “forced to bring his lawsuit after her initial lawyer, Ben Crump, promised and assured her up-front that any GoFundMe monies raised through The Daunte Wright Sr. Memorial Fund would be split 50/50 between Daunte, Jr. and the Wright Family … However, this did not happen.”
Whitaker says that Crump told her specifically, “Chyna, you are going to receive at least 50% of the GoFundMe proceeds collected that my firm will help set up … Don’t worry. We are going to make certain that you and your son are taken care of.”
She believed her then-attorney and that had she not, she would have “set up her own GoFundMe account, which she had a legal right to do.”
The complaint claims that $1,039,260 was raised through the campaign and that the Ben Crump Law firm, the entity that managed the GoFundMe, has not given “one single penny” to Daunte Jr. Allegedly, the firm gave all the money to Wright’s parents, Katie and Arbuey.
“The ability to donate to The Daunte Wright Sr. Memorial Fund on GoFundMe remains open,” the lawsuit informs. “Donations continue to be received, and presumably retained by Katie and Arbuey Wright to date.”
The lawsuit says “Crump and his law firm were quick to sign up Plaintiff and Daunte, Sr.’s parents and begin their typical press releases with Daunte, Sr.’s parents doing the majority of the public releases. A number of these releases mentioned Daunte, Jr. by name together with his age and the fact that he would now grow up without even knowing his father.”
Whitaker believes this was done to garner “sympathy and outrage from the community,” but has done very little to demonstrate her child was more than a prop to foster support for their agenda and to raise money.
In addition to the GoFundMe, the lawsuit alleges an aunt named Kelly Bryant, with the assistance of the Crump Law firm, established a way for people to donate directly to the DWMF, receiving checks, cashier’s check, and money orders in his mother’s name in through the lawyer’s office.
On the website of the fund, it said the money would go to “funeral and burial expenses, mental health, and grief counseling, providing support to Duante’s infant son, Daunte Wright Jr., and to help the Wright family in the fight for justice.”
All the money raised was to go to the Wright family and not to be used for legal fees, but her child has not seen anything from this pot either.
Whitaker believes the lawyer is showing an unreasonable level of favoritism to the parents over the deceased’s son.
The filing states that all of the defendants have “turned their backs on Plaintiff and her infant son, the sole surviving heir of Daunte, Sr.”
In a statement released to Court TV from a spokesperson for Crump, he denies any preferential treatment.
A response to the claim said, “This is strictly a family dispute between the mother of Daunte Wright’s child and Daunte’s parents, who set up the GoFundMe account in question.”
“Ben Crump Law never handled or controlled the money from this GoFundMe account, which was under the sole direction of Daunte’s parents,” it continued. “Ben Crump Law did not benefit from any of the funds raised, and we did not accept any fee in this case. Our hearts are always with the family, and we pray that they can find resolution.”
With her lawsuit, Whitaker seeks a court to grant her “in excess of $500,000,” and mandate a “full and complete accounting” of the accounts connected to the fundraiser, legal costs, and any other money generated by the death of her son’s father based on the court’s sound opinion.
This is the second lawsuit filed by Whitaker regarding Wright’s death. In August, she filed a lawsuit against the city of Brooklyn Center and Potter, hoping to determine culpability for injuries caused by the former officer during the confrontation that led to the death of her partner.
In this case, the 21-year-old is seeking a minimum of $150,000 in damages for pain and suffering linked to the post-traumatic stress disorder caused by being an eyewitness to her boyfriend’s death. She was also diagnosed with post-acute stress disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and major depressive disorder.
In the spring of 2021, Wright was fatally shot by Potter during a traffic stop. The officer attempted to arrest Wright for an outstanding warrant, and when he resisted their struggle led to Potter shooting him when she confused her Taser for her gun, as she claimed after the incident.
Last December, Potter was found guilty of first- and second-degree manslaughter and sentenced to 24 months. She will spend 16 of those months in prison and the remainder on supervised release.
