Noor trial set for April 1, all motions to dismiss charges denied

MINNEAPOLIS (KMSP) - Attorneys for the former Minneapolis police officer who shot and killed Justine Damond were back in court Thursday afternoon.

At the meeting, all motions to dismiss and suppress charges were denied and a trial date was set for April 1, 2019. 

The ex-officer and defendant, Mohamed Noor, hoped a judge will throw out the charges against him. Noor has been charged third degree murder and manslaughter in the killing of Damond in July 2017.

In court, his defense attorney asked the judge to dismiss the case for what they see as a lack of probable cause.

Damond was shot and killed when she approached Noor's squad car after calling 9-1-1 to report a possible sexual assault in the alley behind her home in south Minneapolis.

Prosecutors say Noor acted recklessly in using deadly force against the 40-year-old, but his defense attorneys claim Noor thought he was in danger when he fired his weapon.

More than a year after the fatal encounter the 32-year-old Noor has refused to talk with investigators and has been fired from the Minneapolis Police Department.

Noor, who is out of jail on bond, has not formally entered a plea, but his attorneys says he will plead not guilty if the judge does not dismiss the charges against him.

It is not clear if the judge will rule on Noor's motion today. Meanwhile a federal judge is deciding whether to put the Damond family's civil rights lawsuit on hold while the criminal case plays out.