Family Of Man Killed By Police In Mounds View Search For Answers

MOUNDS VIEW, MN — Nearly three months after Noah Kelley was shot by police in Mounds View, his family is still looking for answers.

“This is now two and a half months later, and we virtually have no information on what took place from their end,” his father, Brian Kelley, told Patch. “Now, the challenge is that I don't have much faith in a system that killed my son.”

The officers who fatally shot Noah Kelley were identified by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension as Mounds View Police Department Sergeant Michael Hanson and New Brighton Police Department Officer John Thomas.

The BCA said police-worn body cameras and other cameras captured "portions" of the fatal shooting. Brian Kelley told Patch that his wife and Noah's fiancée have seen footage of the shooting from Mounds View police and are working to schedule a time to view footage from New Brighton Police Department.

The BCA said it will submit its findings to the Ramsey County Attorney's Office when it completes its investigation.

In a statement to Patch, the BCA said, "The BCA investigation is ongoing. We have been in contact with the family throughout the investigative process."

On the evening of Nov. 28, police were called to the 2500 block of County Road I on a report of shots fired, according to a news release from Mounds View Police Department.

While searching the scene, police said they received another report of an armed robbery in a nearby parking lot. A man told police someone pointed a handgun at him in Aldi before the suspect ran into a nearby liquor store, the news release said.

Police from Mounds View and New Brighton entered the store, where there was an "altercation" between Kelley and officers, the department said.

The two officers shot at Noah Kelley, and he was later pronounced dead at Hennepin County Medical Center, according to the news release.

Brian Kelley told Patch his son was in the liquor store for half an hour before he was taken to the hospital. That's led him to believe Noah died within minutes of being shot in the store.

Noah Kelley leaves behind a fiancée and a daughter, who recently turned one. A GoFundMe was set up to support them.

Noah Kelley is remembered as “kind-hearted,” a “gentleman” and a “proud” father to his daughter Lahnnora. His father told Patch that his son worked two jobs so his fiancée could be a stay-at-home mom.

When Noah Kelley was little, his father said he started the family tradition of clapping after praying.

"We did that in honor of him while he was living, his whole life," Brian Kelley said.

When he was five years old, Kelley brought a bag of seashells to the extended family Christmas and handed them out to his family members. He continued this tradition as he got older as well.

Editor's note: GoFundMe is a Patch promotional partner.