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Justine Damond and her father.

In The Justine Damond Case, #13, Cops Interviewing Cops? I wrote of the extraordinarily long time it is taking Local prosecutor Mike Freeman to make a charging decision, and the almost certainly political basis for his reluctance. The Minneapolis Star-Tribune explains some of the political currents likely buffeting Freeman and the rest of the local progressive political establishment:

Freeman continues to insist that he will make a decision before the end of the year, and Minneapolis’ new chief of police said he’s bracing for backlash no matter what Freeman decides.

There’s going to be a reaction from certain segments in the community regardless of what decision is made,’ said Chief Medaria Arradondo.

And what kind of reaction might that be? Which ”segments?”

Our group believes justice delayed is justice denied,’ said Todd Schuman, a member of Justice for Justine. ‘We’re absolutely outraged that it’s taken so long. [skip]

Failing to charge Noor, said Schuman of Justice for Justine, would be ‘unacceptable.’

Anything less than manslaughter, he said, ‘would not be acceptable. Nor should it be acceptable to anyone.

Don’t you just love it when the Left’s rhetoric is used against it? As always, there are consequences for the surviving family, though in this case, Damond was not a drugged criminal, but a totally innocent woman acting as any good citizen should.

[Damond family attorney Robert] Bennett said Damond’s family is still struggling to cope with her death, made more difficult as they wait for Freeman’s decision.

‘It’s tough to wait, but it’s necessary,’ he said.

And now, a word from the Muslim side of the story:

Jaylani Hussein, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ Minnesota chapter, acknowledged the Somali community will be angered if Noor is charged.

But that reaction won’t come because of Noor’s race, Hussein said, but rather because his actions could be taken to represent likely actions of all Somalis.

‘Our entire community is going to be dragged into this mess,’ Hussein said.

CAIR has undeniable Islamist terrorist ties, recognized by many countries, including Muslim countries. But even if CAIR isn’t hot to play a race card, the NAACP never misses the chance:

Mohamed Noor

The head of the Minnesota chapter of the NAACP, Jason Sole, said he’s heard from members who would be angry if Noor were charged because he’s black.

But Sole said he expects prosecutors to file charges against the officer.

‘If it happens to be a black guy, so be it,’ he said.

According to The Daily Mail, the local police union, which has been relatively quiet on this shooting, also has concerns: 

In September, the Minneapolis police union, after months of silence, stepped in after Mr Freeman told a town hall meeting the shooting did not have to happen.

‘We want an assurance that Noor will not be charged simply on the basis of Damond’s status as a fine young woman in a nice neighbourhood,’ police union boss Lieutenant Bob Kroll wrote in a letter published in the Star-Tribune.

As I’ve previously noted, the Damond case presents a difficult situation for Minneapolis’ progressive rulers. It’s entirely fair to believe progressive political values rather than the law or concern for the rule of law and equal justice for all will decide the fate of Mohamed Noor. By that measure, the outcome is preordained: Damond’s death will be ruled a tragic accident, and Noor’s actions a reasonable response to her unfortunate actions. After all, it was Damond’s supposed slapping of the police car that would have made any police officer believe he was being ambushed, and he was justified in shooting the first person he saw, even if so doing required him to discharge his weapon, unexpectedly, in the face of another police officer. In short, any startled police officer can reasonably shoot at the first movement he sees in the dark, regardless of safety concerns or objective reality.

Justine Damond

This is precisely as insane as it sounds, but it does accurately reflect the preferred progressive narrative, which Minneapolis pols have been careful not to publically trumpet. Even they realize how indefensible it is, which may not prevent them from doing it if they think they can get away with it. Freeman may try to cover his true intentions by claiming he could not prove a charge beyond a reasonable doubt, or by citing some other weak technical reasons, but it is the outcome I fully expect. Even if he announces some sort of prosecution, it will be necessary to carefully watch him to see if he throws the trial as a way of covering himself in every political direction.

The residents of Justice For Justine are people of both genders and all races. Their concern is the rule of law. Their worry is the precedent this would set, and that it would inject new energy into what they suspect: the Minneapolis PD engages in diversity hiring, putting unqualified and dangerous people on the street because they are of the right racial victim group, or of the preferred progressive national origin. They worry that such people, when they make deadly mistakes, will be protected, and kept on the force, because Leftists never admit error, particularly error related to their policies. They worry there will be more Justine Damonds, sacrificed in the name of Progressive virtue signaling and political correctness.

Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges with Muslims signaling an affirmation of their faith.
CAIR is worry about anti-Muslim sentiment and that the entire Somali Muslim population of Minneapolis will be blamed for Noor’s actions by racist, anti-Muslim whites. Considering there have been no protests against Muslims, no attacks on Muslims, and no anti-Muslim rhetoric, one may reasonably believe Minnesotans are sufficiently intelligent to understand the actions of one Catholic do not reflect on all Catholics, just as the actions of one Muslim do not reflect on all Muslims.

The local NAACP’s Jason Sole’s statement does not specifically indicate a racial angle, but one can reasonably expect the NAACP to play the race card if Noor is charged. Justine Damond and those that love her can also be reasonably expected to care nothing about the race of the man that killed her, except to the degree he may have been a diversity hire which may well have been a causative factor of Damond’s death. And just as Minnesotans are sufficiently intelligent to care nothing for Noor’s religion, they are likewise sufficiently tolerant to care nothing about his race, nor to blindly see that as a causative factor in his shooting of Damond.

The police union’s position, particularly its relative silence on this case, is interesting. Usually, police unions are strident defenders of officers, with a single exception: when what the officer has done is so obviously wrong and indefensible they can do nothing more than advocate for due process without losing all credibility. That appears to be the case here. I suspect they have little to fear.

We can ardently hope charging decisions in America—anywhere in America—will be made considering only the facts, evidence and the law. We have worked so hard for so long to eliminate race, national original, gender, and nationality as a factor in the administration of justice. Unfortunately, that may not be true in Minnesota, and particularly not in Minneapolis. Progressives may honestly believe that making such decisions on feelings and progressive policies is the ultimate expression of justice, but that’s not justice, which must be independent of such concerns. It’s social justice, and therein lies division, inequality and destruction.

If Freeman is smart, and honest, he’ll make his decision entirely on the law he has sworn to uphold. The law cares only about what Noor did, not his race, faith or origin. So must we all.