The judge on Thursday said that it was “the longest sentence I have imposed after hearing thousands of cases over the years, but it is well deserved.”
Vance Boelter, the man who admitted to the murder of Minnesota Speaker of the House Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, as well as the shooting of state Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette, has been sentenced to two life sentences in prison plus 40 years.
The judge on Thursday said that it was "the longest sentence I have imposed after hearing thousands of cases over the years, but it is well deserved," per CBS News.
https://twitter.com/nicksortor/status/2080340158595977233
Boelter, who was appointed by the Tim Walz administration to serve on the Governor's Workforce Development Board, claimed in a handwritten letter that Walz had "wanted" him to kill the state lawmakers.
Boelter, 59, pleaded guilty to all six federal charges against him in earlier in June and confessed to the shootings that he carried out on June 14, 2025. The crimes took place in the Twin Cities suburbs of Champlin and Brooklyn Park. The crimes, which gained national news coverage, led to a manhunt for Boelter that lasted for 43 hours.
Before being sentenced, Boelter said in a statement, "To every person I have caused loss, pain, heartache, confusion, shame or loneliness, I am truly sorry."
The Hortman's children, Sophie and Colin, said that the killing of their parents have left lasting emotional scars and turmoil.
"What I cared about is my entire life had been shattered in 30 seconds," Sophie Hortman in court. "My parents were dead. The dog had been shot multiple times. My brother was wrecked."
Colin Hortman said that he now lives with post-traumatic stress disorder. "The blood that was spilled is the last thing I see before I fall asleep and the first thing I see as I wake," he said.
John Hoffman said in court, "Our home no longer feels like the sanctuary it once was. We installed solid steel doors and reinforced security. Your honor, those aren't home improvements. They are daily reminders that violence followed us home."
Yvettt said in her court statement that she "genuinely believed" she was about to die when she was shot.
When Boelter was arrested he had a manifesto that listed 70 different politicians, including Walz as well as others. The night of the shootings, he posed as a police officer with a mask. He first went to the Hoffman's home, where they were both shot but not killed. Afterwards, he then went to the Hortmans' home, where both Melissa and her husband died from gunshot wounds.
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