Sept. 15 (UPI) -- The Minnesota Supreme Court on Wednesday overturned a third-degree murder conviction for a former Minneapolis Police officer who fatally shot a woman who called 911 for help.
The state's highest court, though, upheld Mohamed Noor's lesser conviction for second-degree manslaughter. A Minnesota jury convicted him on both counts in 2019 for the death of Justine Ruszcyzyk Damond in 2017.
The court said there wasn't enough evidence to uphold the more severe charge, for which he was sentenced to 12.5 years in prison. The judges ordered a lower court to re-sentence Noor on the manslaughter charge.
Damond, who was Australian, called 911 on July 15, 2017, to report what she believed to be a rape occurring outside her home. Police they heard a "slapping" sound against a police car when they arrived at the scene, moments before they shot her.
A search warrant filed later indicated that Damon may have struck the police car with her hand, then approached the driver's door, where Noor shot her as he sat in the front passenger seat.
Prosecutors, though, said there was no noise and no reason to shoot Damond.
