Vance Boelter expected to plead guilty in Minnesota lawmaker attacks

Vance Boelter is expected to admit guilt in the Minnesota lawmaker attacks, closing the door on a death-penalty trial in one of the state’s most politically charged episodes of violence. Federal prosecutors said the 58-year-old will change his plea Thursday morning before U.S. District Judge John R. Tunheim in Minneapolis after the Justice Department agreed not to seek capital punishment.

Boelter is charged in federal court with six counts tied to the June 14, 2025 attacks, including stalking, murder, attempted murder and firearms offenses. The indictment centers on the killings of former Minnesota House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman, the shooting of state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette Hoffman, and the attempted shooting of their daughter, Hope Hoffman.

Authorities said Boelter allegedly showed up at the victims’ homes in the early morning hours impersonating a police officer and wearing a realistic-looking mask. Officials said the attacks were carefully planned, with Boelter using the internet and other tools to identify addresses and family names. The violence followed a two-day manhunt, underscoring how quickly the case moved from a targeted attack on public officials to a statewide search.

The Justice Department said it will not pursue the death penalty because the crimes he faces were not eligible for capital punishment under federal law. If he changes his plea as expected, Boelter is likely to face life in prison with no possibility of release, ending the possibility of a drawn-out trial over whether he should be sentenced to death.

For the Hortman and Hoffman families, a guilty plea would spare them the strain of a capital trial and the uncertainty of a jury proceeding, but it would also mean no public contest over the evidence in court. The case has already been held in state court while the federal prosecution moved ahead, and it has become a focal point in the broader debate over threats against elected officials, especially when those threats turn into violence at home.

The killings drew swift condemnation from lawmakers across party lines, and the U.S. House later unanimously adopted a resolution condemning the Minnesota shootings. In a state where the Minnesota House of Representatives and Minnesota State Senate are built on close-contact politics, the case has served as a stark reminder that the risks facing public officials can extend far beyond the Capitol.