Mohamed Noor's Lawyers Push For New Trial In Shooting Death Of Justine Ruszczyk Damond
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — The lawyers representing former Minneapolis Police Officer Mohamed Noor are demanding a new trial for their client.
Noor was found guilty of third degree murder and manslaughter in the July 2017 shooting death of Justine Ruszczyk Damond -- and sentenced to 12 and a half years in prison.
Ruszczyk had called police to report a disturbance going on in her area. However, when she approached the responding police car, Noor said he thought he was being ambushed and shot the 40-year-old woman.
Now, Noor's lawyers are arguing that the court deprived Noor of his right to a public trial, and deprived him of due process by limiting his ability to explain his actions.
Their 60-page-long filing also says the evidence was insufficient to support the "depraved-mind element" of third-degree murder or to "rebut the reasonable-officer defense", and that the district court "erred by admitting duplicative expert testimony."
Last June, Ruszczyk's family received the largest police settlement in Minneapolis history, in the amount of $20 million.
Meanwhile, Noor has been moved to an out-of-state prison, and his location is not being disclosed, to protect his safety.