Vance Luther Boelter, the man charged with the killings of Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman, is expected to change his plea to guilty during a federal court hearing on Thursday. The development comes after U.S. prosecutors announced they would not seek the death penalty in the case, part of a plea agreement reached ahead of the hearing.
Boelter is also charged with shooting state Sen. John Hoffman nine times and his wife, Yvette Hoffman, eight times. Both survived the attack. Prosecutors allege Boelter disguised himself as a police officer and used a fake squad car during the shootings. He was captured near his home in Green Isle, Minnesota, after a two-day manhunt.
The federal case against Boelter includes six charges, including murder, attempted murder, stalking, and firearms-related offenses. Authorities have described the shootings as politically motivated. A notebook found in Boelter’s abandoned vehicle reportedly contained a list of elected officials, suggesting a broader targeting plot.
The Justice Department informed U.S. District Judge John Tunheim of Boelter’s intent to change his plea in a letter on Wednesday. The decision not to pursue the death penalty was influenced by a federal judge’s earlier ruling that interstate stalking charges do not meet the threshold for a capital crime. Minnesota abolished the death penalty in 1911, and no federal death penalty case has ever been brought in the state.
Boelter’s guilty plea would mark a significant step in the legal process, potentially sparing the Hortman children, Colin and Sophie, from testifying in a trial. The case has been described as one of the most brutal instances of political violence in Minnesota’s recent history.