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Life sentence for Boelter
Vance Boelter, who admitted in court to shooting two Minnesota lawmakers and their spouses, was sentenced to two life terms plus 40 years in federal prison on Thursday.
Judge John R. Tunheim said it was "the longest sentence I have imposed after hearing thousands of cases over the years, but it is well deserved."
Prosecutors said Boelter pleaded guilty in June to six federal charges tied to the killings of former House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, and the shootings of state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife Yvette.
The attacks in the Twin Cities suburbs of Champlin and Brooklyn Park prompted a manhunt that lasted 43 hours and ended in rural Green Isle, Minnesota, according to the reporting.
Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche said after sentencing, "This murderer will spend the rest of his life behind bars for his heinous acts of violence against public servants and their families."
Victims describe trauma
In court, Sen. John Hoffman told the judge the defendant looked him in the eyes and pulled the trigger, saying, "The defendant looked me in the eyes and pulled the trigger."
Yvette Hoffman said she was too traumatized to work since the attack and described seeing her blood stream down a white washing machine, telling the court, "I will never forget looking down and watching my blood slowly stream down that white washing machine."
Colin Hortman said his family went from "whole to shattered" in one night, and he described how his parents would never meet his children.
Mark Hortman’s father and siblings voiced anger that Boelter would not face the death penalty, with ABC7 Bay Area reporting that Boelter pleaded guilty to avoid it.
ABC News reported that Boelter spoke briefly at the hearing, saying, "To every person I have caused loss, pain, heartache, confusion, sadness, shame or loneliness, I am truly sorry."
Aftermath and next legal steps
The Department of Justice announced in June it would not seek the death penalty for Boelter, and prosecutors said they told him they would take the death penalty off the table if he pleaded guilty and served two consecutive life sentences plus 40 years.
“The Minnesota man who pleaded guilty to killing a top Democratic lawmaker and her husband was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison on Thursday, a little over a year after the political attacks”
U.S. Attorney for Minnesota Daniel Rosen said Thursday, "Today, the United States ensured that Boelter will spend the rest of his life in prison without the possibility of release."
The Hennepin County Attorney's Office said it plans to move forward with state charges, including two counts of first-degree premeditated murder, four counts of attempted first-degree murder, and one count each of felony cruelty to an animal and impersonating an officer.
The Hortman family also filed a civil lawsuit accusing Boelter of assault, battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence and negligence per se, according to the complaint.
NBC News reported that Boelter faces state charges including two counts of murder, four counts of attempted murder, impersonating a police officer and animal cruelty, as the case shifts from federal sentencing to ongoing state proceedings.
