A man charged in the political assassinations of a top Democrat in the Minnesota House and her husband, as well as the attempted murders of a state senator and his wife, is due to appear in federal court to change his not-guilty plea. Vance Boelter, 58, was captured near his home in rural Green Isle after what prosecutors have called the largest search for a suspect in Minnesota history.

Background

Former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman, and state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette Hoffman, were shot by a man who came to their doors disguised as a police officer and driving a fake squad car. The Hortmans’ golden retriever was so gravely injured that he had to be euthanized.

Boelter faces federal and state murder, attempted murder, and other charges. His state case has been on hold pending the resolution of his federal charges. The U.S. attorney’s office in Minneapolis notified the court that the Justice Department would not seek the death penalty against Boelter in accordance with a proposed plea agreement.

Friends described Boelter as an evangelical Christian and occasional preacher and missionary, who held politically conservative views and had been struggling to find work. In some messages to media, Boelter referenced a vague and cryptic “investigation” he had been carrying out, sometimes suggesting it was about the COVID-19 vaccine.

John Hoffman said in a lawsuit filed against Boelter that his left arm and hand likely would never fully recover, and that he also had permanent injuries to his digestive and urinary systems. Yvette Hoffman was left with permanent physical weakness, the lawsuit said, while their adult daughter, Hope Hoffman, who was there and called 911 but was not shot, suffered severe psychological trauma.

Original reporting: 40/29 / KHBS (NW Arkansas) — read the source article.