Minnesota Double Murder Suspect to Plead Not Guilty in Federal Court
The man accused of killing the top Democrat in the Minnesota House, along with her husband, and wounding a state senator and his wife, is expected to plead not guilty during his federal arraignment on Thursday, according to his attorney.
Vance Boelter, 58, of Green Isle, Minnesota, was indicted on July 15 on six federal charges, including murder, stalking, and firearms violations. If convicted, the murder counts could carry the death penalty under federal law—although prosecutors say a final decision on pursuing that is still months away.
Alongside the indictment announcement, prosecutors released a handwritten letter allegedly penned by Boelter to FBI Director Kash Patel, in which he confessed to the June 14 shootings of Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark.
But the letter fails to clarify why Boelter targeted the Hortmans or State Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, who both survived the attack.
Thursday’s hearing, overseen by US Magistrate Judge Dulce Foster, will also function as a case management conference. The judge is expected to release an updated case schedule, potentially laying out a trial date.
Federal prosecutors have requested the case be labeled as “complex,” arguing that both sides will require significant time to review the massive body of evidence, which would exempt it from standard speedy trial rules.
So far, Boelter’s motives remain clouded in mystery. Acquaintances describe him as an evangelical Christian with conservative political beliefs, who had been struggling with unemployment. Investigators found that he had compiled extensive lists of Democratic politicians in Minnesota and across other states.
In a series of enigmatic jail messages sent to the New York Times, Boelter claimed he acted out of a Christian duty to love his neighbor. “Because I love my neighbors, prior to June 14th, I conducted a two-year undercover investigation,” he wrote.
Earlier messages, published by the New York Post, show Boelter denying that his actions had anything to do with abortion or support for Donald Trump, though he refused to go into detail.
“There’s little concrete evidence explaining why he embraced political violence and extremism,” said Joe Thompson, the acting US Attorney for Minnesota, at a press conference last month. He reaffirmed that prosecutors view Hortman’s murder as a “political assassination.”
According to officials, Boelter disguised himself as a police officer and drove a fake squad car to the Hoffmans’ residence in Champlin, a suburb of Minneapolis, early on June 14. He allegedly shot Senator Hoffman nine times and his wife eight times.
Shortly after, Boelter reportedly drove to the Hortmans’ home in Brooklyn Park and fatally shot both Melissa and Mark.