The authorities are currently seeking 57-year-old Vance Boelter, suspected of shooting two Minnesota lawmakers. Boelter was previously appointed by Governor Walz in 2019 to the Governor’s Workforce Development Board. Police found fliers in his car with the words “No Kings,” a reference to the group protesting nationwide today. The group also canceled Northeastern Minneapolis rallies and urged protesters and residents to follow local law enforcement directives, including the ongoing shelter-in-place order. Officers briefly confronted Boelter posing a police officer at Rep. Hortman’s home before he fled.
Updated June 14, 2025 at 2:00 P.M.
Former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband were killed in a targeted shooting Friday night. State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife were also shot and wounded.
Gov. Tim Walz confirmed the deaths Saturday, calling the shooting a “politically motivated assassination.”
“We must all… stand against all forms of political violence,” Walz said.
The suspect, who remains at large, was reportedly impersonating a police officer. A manhunt is ongoing in Brooklyn Park, a northern suburb of Minneapolis, where both lawmakers served.
Hortman, a Democrat first elected in 2004, was a key legislative leader and former House Speaker. Hoffman, also a Democrat, has served in the Senate since 2012 and previously held local school board leadership.
Both couples were shot at their homes in the northern Minneapolis suburbs of Brooklyn Park and Champlaign. The motive is still under investigation, but authorities said the attack was politically driven.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is leading the search for the suspect.
Updated 10:00 A.M. CT, June 14, 2025
A shelter-in-place order remains in effect Saturday morning in Brooklyn Park, a northern suburb of Minneapolis, after two Minnesota state lawmakers and their spouses were shot by a suspect impersonating a police officer, officials said. A mobile alert went out to Minneapolis area residents warning them to "shelter in place."
Democrats Sen. John Hoffman and Rep. Melissa Hortman and their spouses were among those injured. Police have not confirmed whether the shootings took place at the same location but said the victims were specifically targeted. The extent of their injuries has not been publicly released.
The suspect, described as a white man with brown hair wearing body armor over a blue uniform-style shirt and pants, remains at large and is considered armed and dangerous. Authorities are urging residents near Edinburgh Golf Course to remain indoors and call 911 with any information.
Gov. Tim Walz said the State Emergency Operations Center has been activated, and that state agencies are assisting local law enforcement. The FBI and Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office are also involved in the search.
I’ve activated the State Emergency Operations Center.
Local law enforcement in Champlin and Brooklyn Park have the full resources of the State of Minnesota behind them.
We are monitoring the situation closely and will share more information soon.
— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) June 14, 2025
The shooting comes amid a rise in politically motivated threats and violence across the country. Minnesota, already a flashpoint for national debates on policing and public safety following the 2020 murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, has faced heightened tensions in recent years between officials and extremist groups.
The investigation is ongoing, and officials have not released a possible motive.
Original story: Posted June 14, 2025 at 10:00 A.M. ET
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