Minnesota Supreme Court to review Mohamed Noor murder conviction
Former Minneapolis police officer Mohamed Noor was convicted in the 2017 shooting death of Justine Ruszczyk Damond. (FOX 9)
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The Minnesota Supreme Court says it will review the third-degree murder conviction of former Minneapolis police officer Mohamed Noor this summer, Chief Justice Lorie Gildea said.
In June 2021, the state’s Supreme Court says it will hear oral arguments after the Minnesota Court of Appeals upheld the third-degree murder conviction for Noor in the July 2017 shooting death of Justine Ruszczyk Damond.
Ruszczyk had called 911 fearing a woman was being assaulted near her home in Minneapolis’ Fulton neighborhood. She eventually approached Noor’s squad car in the alley.
Noor testified at trial that in that moment, he feared an ambush at the driver’s side window and he fired across his partner, killing the 40-year-old Australian woman.
A jury found Noor guilty of third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. He was sentenced to over 12 years in prison.
Noor’s legal team challenged the third-degree murder statute, arguing it did not appropriately fit the crime.
Last month, a split, three-judge panel ruled it did and the conviction will stand.
The Noor case has implications for the upcoming trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. After the Court of Appeals upheld Noor's third-degree murder conviction, prosecutors in the Chauvin case requested for the third-degree murder charge to be reinstated against Chauvin. The Court of Appeals heard arguments on Monday on whether to reinstate the third-degree murder charge in the Chauvin case.