Records: Cop Accused in Australian’s Death Can’t Take Stress

Former Minneapolis police officer Mohamed Noor arrives at the Hennepin County Government Center for a hearing in Minneapolis in this May 8, 2018, file photo. Noor is charged in the July 2017 shooting death of Justine Ruszczyk Damond, of Australia, who had called 911 to report a possible assault. Jim Mone/AP

MINNEAPOLIS —Training officers voiced concerns about a Minneapolis police officer’s fitness for duty long before he fatally shot an Australian woman who had dialed 911 to report a possible assault, prosecutors say.

A court filing from prosecutors also says that Mohamed Noor pointed a gun at a motorist’s head just two months before he fatally shot Justine Ruszczyk Damond in July 2017.

Defense attorneys had filed a motion seeking to dismiss murder and manslaughter charges against Noor. In a response filed Sept. 5, Hennepin County prosecutors said officers who were training Noor reported instances in which he had problems handling the stress of the job and seemed unwilling to engage with people.

Noor also took a psychological test in 2015 that showed he disliked being around people and had difficulty confronting others. Still, a psychiatrist found Noor was “psychiatrically fit” to work as a cadet officer. A hearing on the motions is set for Sept. 27.

Noor was fired in March, the same day he was charged. His lawyers have said he acted in self-defense, and his union is appealing his dismissal.

Damond, a 40-year-old life coach, had called 911 to report a possible sexual assault in the alley behind her home. Prosecutors say Noor was in a squad car’s passenger seat when he shot Damond through the driver’s side window after she approached the vehicle.

The Associated Press left a message on Sept. 6, seeking comment from Noor’s attorney, Thomas Plunkett. The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office declined to comment.

The psychological evaluation said Noor was more likely than other officer candidates to become impatient with others over minor infractions, have trouble getting along with others, to be more demanding and to have a limited social support network. The evaluation said that Noor “reported disliking people and being around them.”

But since Noor exhibited no signs of a major mental illness, chemical dependency or personality disorder in a separate a clinical evaluation, a psychiatrist cleared Noor to work, the filing said.

Michael Quinn, a former Minneapolis detective, told the Star Tribune that any of those findings should have raised red flags during the hiring process.