Minneapolis: Upstairs in the courtroom there were gasps of surprise when the jury's verdict was read aloud.

After a month-long trial, testimony from 60 witnesses and 11 hours of jury deliberations, Mohamed Noor was found guilty of killing Justine Ruszczyk Damond. And not just guilty of manslaughter but of third-degree murder, a virtually unheard-of outcome in police shooting trials in America.

Ruszczyk's brother Jason and his wife started sobbing and embraced each other. Noor's wife, too, was in tears.

After sitting through the entire trial, Ruszczyk's family were relieved that someone had been held accountable for the death of the 40-year old life coach from Sydney.