BCA gets personnel files, psychological records of officers involved in Damond shooting

The state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) is continuing to dig into the backgrounds of the two Minneapolis police officers involved in the fatal shooting of Justine Ruszczyk Damond nearly two months ago.

Their latest request: The unredacted personnel files and medical records of the officers, Mohamed Noor and Matthew Harrity.

Damond, 40, a native of Australia, was shot and killed July 15 by Noor when the officers responded to her 911 call about a possible sexual assault in the alley behind her Fulton neighborhood home. The case drew international outrage and led to the ouster of Chief Janeé Harteau.

In the search warrant filed this week in Hennepin County District court, BCA special agent Douglas Henning wrote that the records "may assist with the investigation." Henning requested "any remaining data maintained by the City of Minneapolis for these officers," including "medical files that contain pre-employment psychological exams, the unredacted personnel files, and the pre-employment background investigations," the warrant said.

The department turned the information over to the BCA last week on a disc and two envelopes containing copies of the requested data, according to the warrant.

Since the shooting, the police command staff has voluntarily provided to investigators body camera videos, the patrol vehicle involved in the shooting, audio of 911 calls and police radio traffic and the officers' iPhones.

Because the officers' personnel files are protected under the state's data practices law, the BCA had to get a warrant to obtain them.

On Wednesday, a police spokesman said that he couldn't comment because of the ongoing investigation. Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said Aug. 28 that he expected to make a decision by the end of the year whether to file charges in connection with the investigation.

Libor Jany • 612-673-4064 Twitter:@StribJany