Lawyers are set to deliver their final addresses to a jury Wednesday in the case of Umar Zameer, who is on trial for first-degree murder in the July 2, 2021 death of Toronto police Const. Jeffrey Northrup in the parking garage below Nathan Phillips Square.
Because he called evidence, defence lawyer Nader Hasan will go first. He will ask jurors to acquit his client of not just murder but of any crime, arguing the Crown has failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Zameer knew Northrup was a police officer dressed in plainclothes, and that he had no intent to kill him or anyone else that night.
Toronto police Const. Jeffrey Northrup’s badge, seen here in an evidence photo taken soon after he was killed.
Umar Zameer leaves 361 University Ave. court in Toronto, April 11, 2024. Asked whether plainclothes police Const. Jeffrey Northrup and his partner identified themselves, Zameer told the jury: “No, they didn’t say anything. They were just rushing towards the car.”