In first statement since shooting, John and Yvette Hoffman detail what happened ‘that horrific night’

In a statement released Thursday night, Sen. John Hoffman and his wife Yvette for the first time provided chilling details of the moments when they were shot last weekend, allegedly by a man now charged with attempting to murder them and a short time later assassinating Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark.

The Hoffmans were hospitalized following the shooting early Saturday, in which Vance Boelter allegedly dressed up like a police officer and shot them multiple times in the entryway of their Champlin home.

In their statement, the Hoffmans said they haven’t been able to release much information until now because they were receiving medical care. But they said they wanted to offer “more clarity of what happened” in the early morning hours of June 14.

The couple said they returned home Friday evening with their adult daughter, Hope, after attending the DFL Humphrey-Mondale Dinner. At 2 a.m., they said, all three were awakened by “pounding on the front door” and shouting from someone who said he was a police officer and wanted to come in. The three went to the door and opened it to the gunman, they said.

John Hoffman “lunged” at the gunman, whose weapon was pointed at him, and was shot nine times. As he fell, Yvette Hoffman reached out to push the gunman away and close the door, but she was shot through the door eight times.

Hope Hoffman locked the door and then called 911, telling the operator that Sen. John Hoffman had been shot in his home.

“Her brave actions and quick thinking triggered the notice to public safety officials that a politically-motivated act was potentially underway,” the couple said of Hope.

According to the federal complaint, Boelter was wearing a hyper-realistic mask and what appeared to be a police uniform, and was shining a flashlight into the house. Numerous bullets were found inside the home, including some lodged in an Amazon package and a toaster, according to a search warrant filed this week.

The Hoffmans said they were “heartbroken” over the Brooklyn Park murders of the Hortmans. They said Hope had gone to school with the Hortmans’ daughter Sophie.

“We know that they — along with Colin Hortman — will have each other’s support as we all work through the devastating consequences of that horrific night,” the Hoffmans said.

The couple said they have been “uplifted by the prayers and support from so many” across the state and nation.

“Choosing to work in the public sector, even in as limited a way as John’s career as a senator, has always meant sacrificing a level of privacy,” the Hoffmans said. “But now we are grappling with the reality that we live in a world where public service carries such risks as being targeted because someone disagrees with you or doesn’t like what you stand for.

”As a society, as a nation, as a community, we must work together to return to a level of civility that allows us all to live peacefully.”

Gov. Tim Walz said Thursday that Yvette Hoffman would soon be released from the hospital, which spokespeople declined to confirm. John Hoffman remained hospitalized Thursday in serious but stable condition.