Thursday, March 28, 2024

Former Minneapolis Officer Mohamed Noor Guilty of Third-degree Murder, Manslaughter in Killing of Australia-native

US-CRIME-POLICE-HOMOCIDE-TRAIL
Former Minneapolis Police officer Mohamed Noor(C) arrives with his attorneys Thomas Plunkett(R) and Peter Wold for the beginning of his trial in Minneapolis, Minnesota on April 2, 2019. – Jury selection began April 1, 2019 in the murder trial of a former Minnesota police officer who fatally shot an unarmed Australian woman, provoking outrage in the United States and in the victim’s home country. Prosecutors say Somali-American Mohamed Noor opened fire on Justine Damond in Minneapolis in July 2017 while seated in the passenger seat of his squad car. (Photo by Kerem Yucel / AFP) (Photo credit should read KEREM YUCEL/AFP/Getty Images)

*A former Minneapolis police officer faces more than 15 years in prison for shooting and killing an unarmed yoga teacher nearly two years ago.

Mohamed Noor has been found guilty of third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the fatal shooting of Australia-native Justine Ruszczyk Damond. He was acquitted of second-degree murder, MSN reports.

Noor could receive between 10-15 years in prison for the third-degree murder conviction and 3 1/2 to nearly 5 years for the manslaughter charge during sentencing, which is scheduled for June 7.

After the verdict was read in court on Tuesday afternoon, Noor, 33, was immediately handcuffed and taken into custody.

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Noor fatally shot Damond after he and his partner, Matthew Harrity, responded to her 911 call about a possible sexual assault in the alley behind her home.

Noor and Harrity both testified that they were startled by a loud sound and when they saw a shadowy figure raising an arm towards Harrity’s open driver’s side window, the officers feared they were being ambushed so Noor fired from the passenger seat through the window, striking the victim.

Prosecutors argued that Noor acted unreasonably when he fired, and reacted too quick to assume that Damond was a threat.

Australian reporter Kimberley Pratt traveled to Minnesota to cover the trial, as the case captured the country’s attention.

“We knew [Noor] did it, but it was whether how much weight the jury put on that ‘reasonable use of force,’ which is something that we don’t really see in Australia at all, and that was something that was quite perplexing,” Pratt said. “So while we … kind of thought that he would be found guilty, it was that ‘use of force’ that really threw things up in the air a bit.”

Noor will remain in custody until his sentencing hearing in June.

 

 

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