MINNEAPOLIS _ The family of a Minneapolis woman fatally shot a year ago filed suit Monday against the police officer who fired, along with his partner that night, alleging that the two conspired to keep their body-worn cameras from collecting potentially incriminating evidence and hid behind a "blue wall of silence."
The civil rights complaint was filed in federal court in Minneapolis on behalf of Justine Ruszczyk Damond's father, John Ruszczyk, who lives in Australia. The suit, which refers to her as Justine Maia Ruszczyk, seeks more than $50 million in damages.
Officer Mohamed Noor was charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the July 15, 2017, death of Damond, 40, who was shot in the alley behind her after calling 911 to report a possible sexual assault.
"Essentially, Justine saw something, she said something, like the signs on the airport, and she got killed for doing it, and a year later we don't know why that was, we haven't had any explanation, so we're going to sue these people to find out," Robert Bennett, the family's attorney, said Monday afternoon during a news conference. "They'll have to answer our questions soon."
Responding on behalf of the defendants, City Attorney Susan Segal said Monday, "We are reviewing the civil lawsuit and will be responding to it. Meanwhile, serious criminal charges are currently pending against Mohamed Noor, and it's critically important that the criminal case be allowed to proceed through trial without interference."
Noor's attorneys say he will plead not guilty at his criminal trial and argue that he used "reasonable force" that night. He was fired after charges were filed.
Also named in the suit with Noor and the police leadership at the time is the police officer's partner that night, Matthew Harrity. The suit alleges that Harrity carried out a "conspiracy to cover up the true facts surrounding the killing of Justine."
Bennett accused Harrity of first telling "one story first to the supervising sergeant and a second story to the BCA (the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension) at a later date. (Noor and Harrity) acted together."
The attorney said there have been 35 Minneapolis police officers who didn't cooperate with the Hennepin County Attorney's Office in the time leading up to Noor being charged.
"That's unheard of," Bennett said. "It's well established the blue wall of silence exists in Minneapolis. ... This case is full of conspiracy."
In response, Police union president Lt. Bob Kroll declined to comment about the suit other than to say that any "blue wall of silence" among the rank and file is a "myth."
Don Damond, Justine's fiance, is not a party in the suit. In a statement Monday afternoon, he said, the complaint "sends an unmistakable message to the Minneapolis Police Department: Seismic change is needed." Bennett said Damond had no legal claim "under the quirks of Minnesota law."
Every step of the way, from recruitment to training, he wrote, "the department needs to ensure that officers are capable of making good, skillful decisions _ while fully embracing the sanctity of life _ in even the most stressful situations. Although nothing can bring Justine back, I hope her legacy will help lead to a complete transformation of police culture and training in Minneapolis and all communities."
The conspiracy, the suit spells out, is seen in the officers' actions on the call that sent them to the alley. The two officers "failed to properly activate" their body-worn cameras "at several mandatory points in their call response."
The cameras would have contained "evidence that would incriminate Noor, evidence that would expose the false statements of Harrity, and evidence that would show the public and the jurors in both the criminal and civil trials the truth of the circumstances of Justine's death," the suit continued.
The court action further alleges that the officers' failure to properly activate their cameras was "commonplace to do so" in the department, "knowing that evidence needed to convict a police officer would be lost. ... Noor and Harrity did so to protect themselves _ to insulate any lies they might later tell."
Noor has not given an interview to investigators since the shooting, which is his constitutional right.
Harrity, who has returned to duty on the force, has told investigators he feared for his life in the moment before Damond's shooting behind the home she had shared since March 2015 with Don Damond. The two were to be wed in Hawaii in August 2017.
Harrity "perceived his life was in danger, reached for his gun, unholstered it and held it to his rib cage while pointing it downward," the charges filed against Noor read.
The suit zeros in on distinctions between what he told a supervising sergeant at the scene of the shooting and said later after consulting a Minneapolis Police Federation attorney.
He raised new claims that he failed to mention at the scene, according to the suit, among them: that he heard a voice, a noise and believed his life was in danger.
Along with Noor and Harrity, the defendants include Janee Harteau, police chief at the time of the shooting; Police Chief Medaria Arradondo, assistant chief when Damond was shot; and the city of Minneapolis.
.png?w=600)
