Vance Boelter will not face death penalty in Minnesota lawmaker shootings, DOJ says

On June 14, 2025, Vance Boelter, 58, carried out shootings targeting Minnesota lawmakers and their spouses, killing former House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark and wounding Sen. John Hoffman and his wife Yvette. The U.S. Department of Justice announced there will be no federal death-penalty push in the case, citing that there was no recommendation to seek capital punishment. Boelter faces six federal charges: two counts of stalking, two counts of murder, and two firearms violations. He appeared in court in April in connection with the criminal case. Under federal law, the two murder counts carry potential penalties of death or life in prison, while the stalking charges are not death-eligible. U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen submitted a death-penalty recommendation in April to the assistant attorney general for the criminal division, according to the DOJ.