Upgraded charges filed against Minnesota man accused of killing
lawmaker, wounding another
[August 15, 2025]
By MARK VANCLEAVE and JOSH FUNK
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Minnesota man accused of killing a top Democratic
state lawmaker and wounding another while pretending to be a police
officer is now facing new and upgraded state charges under a fresh
indictment announced Thursday, just a week after he pleaded not guilty
in federal court.
Vance Boelter now faces two charges of first-degree murder, four counts
of attempted first-degree murder and charges of impersonating a police
officer and animal cruelty for shooting one family's dog. Hennepin
County Attorney Mary Moriarty said the charges “reflect the weight of
Mr. Boelter's crimes.”
But the state case continues to take a back seat to the federal case
against Vance Boelter where he faces potentially more serious
consequences. He was indicted July 15 on six federal counts of murder,
stalking and firearms violations. The murder charges could carry the
federal death penalty although prosecutors haven't decided yet whether
to pursue that option. The maximum penalty on the state charges is life
in prison because Minnesota doesn’t have the death penalty.
Boelter pleaded not guilty in federal court on Aug. 7.
Moriarty had requested the state prosecution proceed first, but federal
prosecutors are using their authority to press their case, according to
Daniel Borgertpoepping, Hennepin County Attorney’s Office’s public
information officer.
“When Boelter returns to state custody, we will be prepared to prosecute
him — to hold him accountable to our community,” Moriarty said. “We will
do everything in our power to ensure that he is never able to hurt
anyone again.”
Shocking case of political violence
The full extent of the political violence that officials said Boelter,
58, intended to inflict in the early hours of June 14 after months of
planning alarmed the community. The Green Isle, Minnesota, resident was
arrested a day later following a massive search involving local, state
and federal authorities.
“The damage done to the victims — those with us, those who were taken
from us and to our entire community — has opened wounds that will never
heal,” Moriarty said in a statement.
The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office initially issued a warrant
charging Boelter with two counts of second-degree murder for allegedly
posing as a police officer and fatally shooting former Democratic House
Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, at their home.
Boelter, authorities said, wore a uniform and a mask and yelled that he
was police and told these lawmakers that he was an officer.
Authorities originally charged Boelter with two counts of attempted
second-degree murder, alleging he shot state Sen. John Hoffman, a
Democrat, and his wife Yvette. But officials said when the charges were
filed to secure the warrant that they would likely be updated to
first-degree murder charges. They also added two additional attempted
murder charges Thursday.
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This photo made available by the Ramsey County Sheriff's
Office shows Vance Luther Boelter, the man charged with killing the
top Democrat in the Minnesota House and her husband, and wounding a
state senator and his wife, as he was arrested on June 15, 2025.
(Ramsey County Sheriff's Office via AP, File)
Moriarty said the Hoffmans managed to push Boelter out of their
home, shutting the door before the gunman fired nine times through
the door, striking the senator nine times and his wife eight times.
Both survived. Their adult daughter nearby was not hit.
Other lawmakers targeted
Federal prosecutors already revealed details of their investigation
showing Boelter had driven to two other legislators’ homes in the
roughly hour and a half timeline. Moriarity charged Boelter with
trying to kill one of those lawmakers because he went to her door in
the same way he approached the Hortmans' and Hoffmans' homes and
tried to get inside. She said it doesn't matter that Rep Kristin
Bahner wasn't home. Moriarty said Boelter rang Bahner's door for two
full minutes while yelling it is the police and trying to open the
door himself.
The state case against Boelter shows an application for public
defender was filed June 16, but one has yet to be assigned. Public
defenders are typically assigned in Minnesota at a defendant’s first
appearance, which Boelter did not have before being taken into
federal custody, Borgertpoepping said in a text message.
Controversial prosecutor
Moriarty announced last week that she would not seek reelection next
year.
Moriarty, a former public defender, was elected in 2022 as the
Minneapolis area and the country were still reeling from the death
of George Floyd, a Black man pinned under the knee of a white
officer for 9 1/2 minutes. She promised to make police more
accountable and change the culture of a prosecutors’ office that she
believed had long overemphasized punishment without addressing the
root causes of crime.
Moriarty faced controversy during her tenure because she said she
wanted to move away from punishment as the purpose of prosecution
and focusing on issues that lead people to engage in violence. But
her critics say she has downplayed the concerns of crime victims and
damaged public trust in her office.
___
Funk reported from Omaha, Nebraska, and AP writer Hannah Fingerhut
contributed from Des Moines, Iowa.
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