Vance Boelter, 58, pleaded guilty Thursday in a Minneapolis federal courtroom to murdering former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, in an act of targeted political violence.
Boelter entered guilty pleas to all six federal counts, including two murder charges, two stalking charges, and two federal firearm-shooting offenses, according to the Department of Justice.
Federal prosecutors confirmed they would not seek the death penalty against Boelter in exchange for his agreement to serve two consecutive life sentences plus 40 years in prison.
Boelter also admitted in court to shooting and wounding Democratic state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette Hoffman, during a separate attack carried out the same night as the Hortman murders.
Authorities said Boelter disguised himself as a law enforcement officer, wearing a hyper-realistic silicone face mask, tactical vest, and body armor during the night of the shootings.
Armed with a handgun and a flashlight, Boelter knocked on the Hoffmans’ door shouting “This is the police! Open the door!” before shooting the senator and his wife multiple times.
He then drove to the Hortmans’ residence in Brooklyn Park, parking a Ford Explorer fitted with fake police lights in their driveway and claiming he was conducting a welfare check.
Boelter shot Mark Hortman at the door, then pursued Melissa Hortman as she attempted to flee up the stairs, ultimately shooting her point-blank in the head, an admission that drew audible sobs from the courtroom gallery.
Former U.S. Attorney Joseph Thompson noted that Boelter also attempted to kill the Hoffmans’ daughter, Hope, but that Senator Hoffman and his wife physically shielded her from being shot.
John Hoffman and his wife sat in the front row of the courtroom, watching Boelter admit to crimes that left the senator staring with narrowed eyes at the man who had impersonated a police officer to gain entry to his home.
Following the attacks, police discovered a notebook in Boelter’s abandoned fake police vehicle containing a list of elected officials that investigators suspect were additional targets in the broader plot.
Boelter was apprehended after a 43-hour manhunt described as the largest in Minnesota state history, with police capturing him in a field in Green Isle, approximately one mile from his home.
U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen said in a statement, “Political violence is a scourge in our nation. We now expect Vance Boelter will spend the rest of his natural life in prison without parole.”
Rosen explained the decision to forego the death penalty, stating, “The truth is, when you have a defendant that is prepared to plead guilty to consecutive life terms plus (40 years) to ensure that he never sees freedom again in his entire life, that was an opportunity that we just could not pass up.”
The Hoffman family responded to the hearing with a statement reading, “There is no justice for Mark and Melissa Hortman, and there is not justice when our family and our state will never truly heal.”
Judge John R. Tunheim accepted the recommended sentence and said he would schedule a formal sentencing hearing later this summer to allow victims to address the court.
Boelter still faces separate state charges including first-degree premeditated murder, attempted first-degree murder, and impersonating a police officer, with Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty confirming his federal plea does not affect the state case.
Moriarty called the attacks “a devastating wave of targeted political violence that shocked our state and the nation,” adding that state prosecution would proceed independently of the federal resolution.
Hortman had been one of Minnesota’s most consequential progressive legislators, helping push through landmark policies during the 2023-24 Democratic trifecta including paid leave, gun control measures, cannabis legalization, and a universal free school meals program.
