Minnesota man who killed Democratic lawmaker sentenced to life in US prison

Judge says that long sentence is merited for slaying of state Democratic lawmaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark.Published On 23 Jul 202623 Jul 2026A man who pleaded guilty to assassinating a top Democratic lawmaker in the state of Minnesota has been sentenced to two life terms plus 40 years in prison, in a case that underscored growing concerns over political violence in the United States.Vance Boelter, who pleaded guilty in June to the slaying of House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, was sentenced on Thursday. The 59-year-old also seriously wounded state Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, in the attacks in June of last year.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Man pleads guilty to slaying top Democrat and her husband in Minnesotalist 2 of 3Suspect in Minnesota lawmakers shooting, Vance Boelter, capturedlist 3 of 3How US senator falsely claimed Minnesota shooting suspect was ‘Marxist’end of listVictims and their friends and family shared how the Minneapolis-area attacks, which targeted several state Democratic officials, changed their lives in emotional comments on Thursday.“The defendant looked me in the eyes and pulled the trigger. The defend...