Minneapolis cop who killed 911 caller resentenced Oct. 21
The former Minneapolis police officer who fatally shot a woman who called 911 to report a possible rape behind her home is being resentenced this month, after the Minnesota Supreme Court threw out his murder conviction
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The former Minneapolis police officer who fatally shot a woman who called 911 to report a possible rape behind her home will be resentenced later this month on a lesser charge, after the Minnesota Supreme Court threw out his murder conviction.
Mohamed Noor was initially convicted of third-degree murder and manslaughter in the 2017 death of Justine Ruszczyk Damond, a dual U.S.-Australian citizen. He was sentenced to 12 1/2 years on the murder count and has been serving his time in a prison out of state.
But the Supreme Court ruled last month that the third-degree murder statute wouldn’t apply in Noor’s case. Noor is still convicted of manslaughter and will be sentenced on that count on Oct. 21. He has already served more than 28 months of his murder sentence, so if he receives the presumptive four years for manslaughter, he could be eligible for supervised release around the end of this year.
In its September ruling, the Supreme Court said the state's third-degree murder, or depraved-mind murder, statute can't be applied if a defendant’s actions are directed at a particular person. The state's highest court said that for a third-degree murder charge, the person’s mental state must show a “generalized indifference to human life, which cannot exist when the defendant’s conduct is directed with particularity at the person who is killed.”
The justices said that Noor’s conduct was directed with particularity at Damond, “and the evidence is therefore insufficient to sustain his conviction ... for depraved-mind murder.”
Noor testified in his 2019 trial that a loud bang on his squad car made him fear for his and his partner’s life, so he reached across his partner from the passenger seat and fired through the driver’s window. His attorneys have said he believed he was saving his partner's life.