Ex-Minneapolis officer who killed 911 caller leaves prison

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A former Minneapolis police officer who fatally shot an unarmed lady who referred to as 911 to report a potential sexual assault within the alley behind her house was launched from jail on parole Monday, months after his homicide conviction was overturned and he was resentenced on a lesser cost.

The Minnesota Division of Corrections web site stated Mohamed Noor, 36, was positioned beneath the supervision of Hennepin County Neighborhood Corrections. He was freed 18 days shy of the fifth anniversary of the July 15, 2017, deadly taking pictures of Justine Ruszczyk Damond, a 40-year-old twin U.S.-Australian citizen and yoga trainer who was engaged to be married.

Corrections Division spokesman Nicholas Kimball confirmed that Noor was launched Monday morning. He stated he couldn’t verify the place Noor might be dwelling, however that launched offenders are usually supervised by the county the place they reside.

Noor’s lawyer, Thomas Plunkett, didn’t instantly return a name looking for remark. On Friday he stated he wished to respect Noor’s privateness.

Noor was initially convicted of third-degree homicide and manslaughter, however final yr the Minnesota Supreme Court docket tossed out his homicide conviction and 12 1/2-year sentence, saying that cost did not apply to the case. He was resentenced to 4 years and 9 months on the manslaughter cost.

In Minnesota, it’s presumed {that a} defendant with good conduct will serve two-thirds of a sentence in jail and the remaining on parole. Noor might be on supervised launch till Jan. 24, 2024.

Damond’s stepmother, Maryan Heffernan, stated in a telephone interview Friday that the timing of Noor’s launch — so near the anniversary of Damond’s demise — was painful.

“We’re very upset. However we’re not shocked. We’ve been watching occasions in Minneapolis from miles away and we’re nonetheless bewildered in regards to the cost being dropped and we’re nonetheless bewildered in regards to the tradition of the Minneapolis Police Division,” Heffernan stated.

Noor testified in 2019 that he and his associate had been driving slowly in an alley when a loud bang on their police SUV made him worry for his or her lives. He stated a girl appeared on the associate’s driver’s facet window and raised her proper arm earlier than he fired a shot from the passenger seat to cease what he thought was a menace.

Noor, who’s Somali American, was believed to be the primary Minnesota officer convicted of homicide for an on-duty taking pictures. Since Noor’s conviction, former Minneapolis Officer Derek Chauvin, who’s white, was convicted of homicide within the Might 2020 killing of George Floyd, a Black man who was pinned to the pavement beneath Chauvin’s knee. After Noor’s conviction, Minneapolis agreed to pay $20 million to Damond’s household.

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