The former Minneapolis police officer convicted in the fatal shooting of an unarmed Australian-American woman will be sentenced on Friday. On April 30, a jury found Mohamed Noor guilty of third-degree murder and manslaughter in the July 2017 shooting of 40-year-old Justine Ruszczyk Damond. They returned a not guilty verdict on another charge of second-degree murder. The debate over what happened the night of the shooting unfolded before jurors over a three-week trial. Attorneys Peter Wold and Thomas Plunkett filed a motion arguing that there is no benefit to the community for giving Noor a long prison sentence. They say he has cooperated with prosecutors, showed remorse about the shooting of Justine Ruszczyk Damond, and does positive work in his Somali community.
For nearly two months, their names remained anonymous and their stories went largely untold. As the nation rallied around 5-year-old Landen, the boy thrown from the third floor of Mall of America in April, few people knew the lengths first responders and regular bystanders went to save his life that morning. That changed Thursday night. At a ceremony, the city of Bloomington publicly recognized the helpers who kept Landen alive and led police to the suspect. The few dozen people earned medals and shook hands with police in front of a crowd of a few hundred. The world finally learned what they did back on April 12. In the moments after Emmanuel Aranda tossed Landen over the balcony, 25 people called 911. A shopper rushed to Landen's side; two nurses then arrived and began CPR as they anticipated paramedics. A crew from the Bloomington Fire Department carried Landen on a stretcher into the ambulance as the Bloomington Police Department and mall security officers processed the scene.
The plots at the Cottage Grove cemetery look a bit tidier these days. That's because cemetery crews went around on Monday removing shepherd hooks/hangers, decorative rocks and other memorabilia. Superintendent Ken Otto explained that small objects like decorative rocks posed a hazard for the mowers. He said he didn't want to imagine what it would be like to have one of the rocks sucked into the mower and flung at high speeds. However, some like Diana Bibeau argued the stones aren't "tidy." They called it barren. "I was furious, I was in tears," Bibeau said. "This is not just a resting place for my son, there's just so much more to it." She explained that she was drawn to the plots at Cottage Grove because up until this year, personalization was allowed. Otto said he didn't act on a whim, however. He explained that the rules have always been there but they were never enforced until he became superintendent in November.
