Ted Cruz Says of Daunte Wright's Killing: 'There Are Accidents That Occur'

Texas Senator Ted Cruz has said the killing of Daunte Wright, an unarmed Black man fatally shot by police during a traffic stop, was an accident that came with the territory of "interactions with law enforcement."

His comments came during a third night of unrest outside Brooklyn Center police station in Minnesota, where people protesting the death of the 20-year-old were dispersed by pepper spray and flash bombs by National Guardsman and local law enforcement, CNN reported.

As Fox News showed images of the unrest on Tuesday night, Sen. Cruz was asked for his opinion on the shooting, which police have said was due to an officer, Kim Potter, mistaking her gun for her Taser. Potter has offered her resignation.

Cruz said the unrest in Minnesota had been sparked by "what now appears to be a tragic accident, and an accident where a man's life was taken through a mistake.

"Unfortunately in the course of interactions with law enforcement, sometimes there are accidents that occur," Cruz told anchor Sean Hannity.

The Texas senator went on to blame left-wing lawmakers for being "willing to light the fire and incite violence."

"The shooting needs to be fully investigated. It needs to be gotten to the bottom of why that happened," he said.

He continued: "There are a whole lot of Democratic politicians who celebrate and encourage this kind of lawlessness and resort to violence and it has become a central part of the Democratic Party."

On Tuesday, Brooklyn Center Police Chief Tim Gannon resigned following criticism of his department's response to the protests.

Officer Tony Gruenig, who has served in the department for 19 years, has been appointed acting police chief.

Wright's father, Aubrey Wright, has said he does not believe that the shooting of his son was accidental, telling ABC: "I can't accept that, a mistake. That doesn't even sound right."

Emotions have been running high in Brooklyn Center and in nearby Minneapolis, where the trial is taking place of Derek Chauvin, the former police officer accused of killing George Floyd last year.

Civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump, who is representing Wright's family, held a briefing on Tuesday attended by members of the Floyd family. A video showed the two families meeting to provide moral support to each other and help push for justice.

"They thought that it was important to comfort Daunte Wright's mother and father and family," Crump said, according to ABC News.