Thursday, May 2, 2019

First Somali Muslim on Minneapolis Force Convicted of Murder

MAY 1, 2019 9:00 AM BY DANIEL GREENFIELD38 COMMENTS

When Justine Damond tried to report a rape, Mohamed Noor, the first Somali Muslim officer on the Minneapolis police force, killed her.

Noor claimed that he was acting in self-defense even though the woman he killed was unarmed and was, in no way, shape or form, about to attack him.

Here’s what Robert Spencer originally wrote about the case.

Mohamed Noor is a Somali Muslim. He was the first Somali Muslim on the Minneapolis police force. In 2016, Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges expressed her excitement about that fact: “I want to take a moment to recognize Officer Mohamed Noor, the newest Somali officer in the Minneapolis Police Department. Officer Noor has been assigned to the 5th Precinct, where his arrival has been highly celebrated, particularly by the Somali community in and around Karmel Mall.”

Hodges wasn’t excited because Mohamed Noor had the skills necessary to become a fine police officer. She was only excited because he represented a religious and ethnic group that she was anxious to court. And it became increasingly clear — as we learned about Mohamed Noor’s nervousness and jumpiness and lack of respect for women, and from his own account of events that he relayed to friends (that he was “startled” and reacted by opening fire) — that Mohamed Noor was not cut out to be a policeman. He did not have the temperament for it, and if he hadn’t killed Justine Ruszczyk, he would likely have done something similar at some point.

Now Noor was convicted of third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter by a jury.

After the shooting, Robert noted that the first resort of politicians was to treat Somali Muslims as the victim in a case involving the murder of a woman by a Somali.

Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges immediately recognized — as authorities do everywhere after jihad attacks — that the real victim was not the woman who was killed, but the Muslim community.

And she wrote, “To the Somali community: I want you to know that you are a valued and appreciated part of Minneapolis. I stand with you and support you. The strength and beauty of the Somali and East African communities are a vital part of what makes Minneapolis so strong and beautiful. I am grateful to be your neighbor.

This week a Somali police officer, Officer Mohamed Noor, shot and killed a woman under circumstances we don’t yet comprehend. Justine Damond’s death was tragic and awful for everyone… We cannot compound that tragedy by turning to racism, xenophobia, and Islamophobia.”

Now, after Noor’s conviction, there’s more of the same.

Palmisano also reached out to “our Somali-American neighbors who have been deeply impacted by this tragedy and trial. The best way to honor Justine is to simultaneously remember the pain our Somali community has endured during this tragedy.”

They are the real victims.