Ex-Minneapolis officer guilty in police shooting of Justine Damond
A Minnesota jury has found a former Minneapolis police officer guilty of third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the July 2017 shooting death of an unarmed woman, CBS Minnesota reported. Mohamed Noor stood trial in the fatal shooting of Justine Ruszczyk Damond, a dual U.S.-Australian citizen who approached his squad car minutes after calling 911 to report a possible rape behind her home.
Noor was acquitted of second-degree murder, the station reported.
The death of Damond, a 40-year-old life coach who was engaged to be married a month after the shooting, sparked outrage in both the U.S. and Australia. The incident cost Minneapolis Police Chief Janeé Harteau her job and contributed to the electoral defeat of the city’s mayor a few months later.
The jury of 10 men and two women, which was sequestered, began deliberations Monday and reached their verdict after about 11 hours.
Some members of Damond’s family cried in the courtroom as the verdict was read, the station reports. Noor showed no emotion. He was taken into custody after a judge denied a request for bail ahead of his June 7 sentencing.
Attorneys for Noor, 33, argued that he was justified in using deadly force to protect himself and partner Matthew Harrity from a perceived threat. Prosecutors have argued there was no reasonable threat, and questioned Noor’s claim that he was startled by a bang on the squad car, which he did not mention in the initial investigation.
The jury heard nearly three weeks of testimony, including that of Noor himself, who gave his account for the first time publicly at trial. Noor testified he felt he had no other choice but to shoot to protect his partner in the moments after a “loud bang” on his squad car made him fear a possible ambush.
Noor testified that after he heard the loud noise, he saw fear in Harrity’s eyes and heard his partner yell, “Oh Jesus!” as he went for his weapon. Noor said Harrity was having difficulty pulling his gun from his holster. Noor said he then saw a woman in a pink shirt with blond hair appear at Harrity’s window and raise her right arm.
“I had to make a split-second decision,” Noor testified.
Noor’s voice often cracked as he testified, CBS Minnesota reported, and he repeatedly referred to Damond as “the threat.” But prosecutor Amy Sweasy questioned why Noor perceived a threat at all, especially after he affirmed he couldn’t see the woman’s hands or any weapon.
Jurors also heard from Harrity, who testified the sound made him fearful, but that he felt deadly force was premature.
During his closing argument Monday, defense attorney Thomas Plunkett told jurors all that mattered was the “precise moment” in which Noor fired his gun and that they needed to consider whether Noor acted as a reasonable officer would act in the same circumstances. Sweasy argued the shooting was not justified.
Neither officer had a body camera running when Damond was shot, something Harrity blamed on what he called a vague policy that didn’t require it. The department strengthened the policy after Damond’s death to require that the cameras be turned on when responding to a call.
The jury considered three charges against Noor. They acquitted Noor of second-degree murder, which would have required a finding of intent to kill, but no premeditation. The third-degree murder conviction required a finding that Noor acted recklessly and with a “depraved” mind, but with no intent to kill. Noor was also convicted of second-degree manslaughter, which required a finding that Noor acted with “culpable negligence” and created an “unreasonable risk” of causing death or great bodily harm.
Noor is a Somali-American whose hiring in 2015 was trumpeted by city leaders seeking to diversify the police force. Damond was white. Noor was fired after being charged.
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