Massive Evidence Dump in High-Profile Political Murder Case
Federal prosecutors in the United States have handed over a staggering 130,000 pages of evidence to the defence team of a man accused of murdering a prominent Minnesota Democratic lawmaker and her husband. The disclosure, confirmed during a status conference on Wednesday 12 November 2025, underscores the complexity of a case that authorities have labelled a political assassination.
Vance Boelter, 58, has pleaded not guilty to the murder of former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and to the attempted murder of state Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette.
Defence Overwhelmed by Scale of Evidence
Federal defender Manny Atwal informed the court that the evidence trove is immense. It includes not only the 130,000 PDF pages but also over 800 hours of audio and video recordings and more than 2,000 photographs. This material stems from what has been described as the largest manhunt for a suspect in Minnesota's history.
Atwal revealed that her team has already spent nearly 110 hours simply downloading the material, a process distinct from actually reviewing its contents. She attributed the slow progress in evaluating the evidence to the recent federal government shutdown.
Federal prosecutor Harry Jacobs stated that investigators have provided substantially all of their collected evidence, though some items, such as lab reports, continue to arrive.
Death Penalty Decision and Murky Motives
A pivotal and unresolved aspect of the case is whether prosecutors will seek the death penalty. Jacobs confirmed that no timeline exists for this decision, which ultimately rests with U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi. This is significant as Minnesota abolished its own capital punishment in 1911 and has never witnessed a federal death penalty case, though the Trump administration is advocating for its broader use.
The motivations behind the attacks remain unclear. Boelter, described by friends as a politically conservative evangelical Christian, gave a conflicting account to the conservative outlet Blaze News in August. He claimed he never intended to shoot anyone and that his plan to make citizen's arrests over a baseless conspiracy about COVID-19 vaccine deaths went awry. He alleged he opened fire at the Hoffmans' home only when the family resisted him.
However, he provided no explanation for why he then allegedly proceeded to the Hortmans' home, where he shot the couple and their golden retriever, Gilbert, who later had to be euthanised. Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty has publicly stated she gives no credence to Boelter's jailhouse claims.
Magistrate Judge Dulce Foster has scheduled the next status conference for 12 February and has asked for updates on the death penalty decision. No trial date has been set. In a separate personal development, a Sibley County judge granted Boelter's wife a divorce last month.
