May 1 (UPI) — A jury found former Minnesota police officer Mohamed Noor guilty Tuesday in the fatal shooting of a woman who called 911 for help.
He was convicted of third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter for shooting and killing Justine Ruszcyzyk Damond while responding to her 911 call reporting a possible sexual assault in the alley behind her home on July 15, 2017.
Noor was acquitted of second-degree intentional murder in the case.
Sentencing is scheduled for 9 a.m. June 7.
Noor is believed to be the first officer in the state found guilty of murder while shooting someone on duty.
Defense attorneys stated that Noor’s actions didn’t constitute a crime, saying he acted to protect his partner after hearing a thump in the alley and seeing a figure raising an arm near the driver’s side window of their vehicle.
“It’s a tragedy, but it’s not a crime,” attorney Thomas Plunkett said.
Prosecutors countered that Noor acted unreasonably and was too quick to assume Damond was a threat without considering that she may have been the 911 caller or the subject of the call.
