- 7 months ago
Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN) and other Minnesota officials hold a press briefing after two Democratic lawmakers and their spouses were shot at their homes, with one lawmaker and her husband now dead, in what appears to be a politically-motivated act of violence.
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00:30Thank you for being here.
00:31In a moment, you'll hear from law enforcement officials who will share with you what they
00:34can as up-to-minute updates on the situation here in Minnesota.
00:37You're going to be joined by Commissioner Bob Jacobson, BCA Superintendent Drew Evans,
00:43State Patrol Colonel Christina Bogoyevich, Champlin Park Police Chief Schneider, and Brooklyn
00:49Park Police Chief Mark Brule, as well as the Mayor of Brooklyn Park.
00:55We're here today because an unspeakable tragedy has unfolded in Minnesota.
00:59My good friend and colleague, Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, were shot and
01:03killed early this morning in what appears to be a politically motivated assassination.
01:09Our state lost a great leader, and I lost a dearest of friends.
01:14Speaker Hortman was someone who served the people of Minnesota with grace, compassion,
01:18humor and a sense of service.
01:21She was a formidable public servant, a fixture and a giant in Minnesota.
01:28She woke up every day determined to make this state a better place.
01:33She is irreplaceable, and we've been missed by so many.
01:38Minnesota's thoughts and prayers are with her family, her loved ones, her children and
01:41her parents.
01:43My prayers also go out to State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette, who were each shot
01:49multiple times.
01:50The Hoffmans are out of surgery at this time and receiving care, and we are cautiously optimistic
01:57they will survive this assassination attempt.
02:01This was an act of targeted political violence.
02:05Peaceful discourse is the foundation of our democracy.
02:11We don't settle our differences with violence or at gunpoint.
02:15In the state of Minnesota, and as recently as last week, in the most closely divided state
02:20legislature in the country, we sat down, we worked things out, we debated, we shook hands
02:28and compromised, and we served the state of Minnesota together.
02:33We proved that it's possible, even in these politically charged times, to find compromise
02:39and adhere to the principles of democracy and civil discourse.
02:43We must all, Minnesota and across the country, stand against all forms of political violence.
02:50At this precipice moment we're on, this tragic act here in Minnesota should serve as a reminder
02:58to all of us.
03:00The democracy and the debates in the halls of Congress, in state houses, in school boards,
03:08is a way to settle our differences peacefully and move society to a better place.
03:13We're collaborating with all local, state, and federal agencies on a full investigation.
03:20We're committed to keeping Minnesotans informed as the situation continues.
03:26I assure you that those held, those responsible for this will be held accountable, and each and
03:33every one of us are committed to making sure that a tragedy like this never repeats itself.
03:38In Minnesota, or across this country, I'd now like to turn it over to my public safety
03:42team to fill you in on the specifics of this ongoing investigation.
03:46Thank you, Governor, and thank you everyone for being here today.
03:54My name is Drew Evans, and I'm the superintendent at the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
03:58I want to start by just expressing our deepest sympathies to the communities, the family,
04:05the friends, and everybody that cared about the individuals that were gunned down today.
04:13When we have individuals like this in our political leadership, they're not only political leaders,
04:19but they're members of the community, well-known members of the community,
04:21that the tragedy in a situation like this is not only for them, their friends, and families,
04:26but us collectively, the communities they represent, us as a state of Minnesota as a whole.
04:31About 2 a.m. this morning, there was an original call in the city of Champlin where there was an
04:37individual that had shot Senator Hoffman and his wife. Police responded to that location,
04:43they were dealing with that, and working through that process overnight. And then later on, at
04:50approximately 3.35, another call came in when it was officers proactively checking, because they knew
04:58of the incident that occurred, and they were going to check on Speaker Hortman at that time, at which
05:04time Brooklyn Park police officers encountered the individual who immediately fired at them, and they
05:11exchanged gunfire, and then the individual was able to escape during that exchange of gunfire.
05:18At the residence in Champlin, there was life-saving measures that were provided there.
05:23Both individuals were transported, as was previously noted, and they both received surgeries for their
05:30injuries at the hospital, and their conditions at this time, both those individuals, Senator Hoffman and
05:37his wife were both alive at this time, but they suffered gunshot wounds and are obviously in a
05:43difficult situation. But we're cautiously optimistic that they will continue to improve.
05:48At this time, it is a very active scene still, as you've seen. The Brooklyn Park Police Department,
05:54along with other members, the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office, State Patrol, FBI, BC, and many others,
05:59are actively engaged in a manhunt for the individual that we believe is responsible for this. And so
06:05we'll be sharing that identity with those individuals as this progresses, but I'm going to caution you,
06:10I know there's going to be a ton of interest in this. We're not at the position we can do that,
06:14as we're actively searching for that individual. Right now, just as noted, we have teams,
06:20and the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office and Champlin are working at the scene there that occurred there,
06:25and then we are also, as we're stabilizing this, between Brooklyn Park, working on the homicide
06:29investigation with Brooklyn Park Police, the BCA, FBI is assisting there as well, and we'll be
06:34conducting a crime scene investigation there. And then the individuals that were killed will be doing
06:40autopsies of those individuals to determine the extent of their injuries and how they passed away.
06:46But it was from gunshot wounds. At this time, I will answer questions after Commissioner of Public
06:51Safety Bob Jacobson speaks, but we'll be happy to take a few questions.
06:55Thank you, Superintendent Evans. My name is Bob Jacobson. It's my honor to serve as the Commissioner of Public
07:07Safety for the State of Minnesota. This is a dark day today for Minnesota and for democracy,
07:17but we will not allow fear or violence to define who we are or how we move forward.
07:25We will stand together, and we will stand strong. Our hearts, of course, go out to the victims, their
07:33families, their colleagues at the Capitol, and to the communities that they serve with dedication and
07:40with integrity. These are our public servants, leaders who committed their lives to improving the lives of
07:48others, and they were targeted in a violent and cowardly way. The suspect exploited the trust
07:58of our uniforms, that our uniforms are meant to represent. That betrayal is deeply disturbing to
08:06those of us who wear the badge with honor and responsibility. We want to reassure the public that
08:14there is increased security in place for elected officials and others who may be at risk.
08:20If you see anything suspicious, especially involving individuals impersonating law enforcement,
08:29please report it immediately by calling 911 or your local police department.
08:35With that, I'll step back, and we will be available for any questions. Thank you.
08:40One reminder, please, as you ask your first questions, please don't forget to introduce yourselves,
08:45your media organization, and to the folks answering any questions, please don't forget to repeat the
08:50question.
08:50I can. Good morning, Police Chief Mark Rue, Brooklyn Park Police Department. The question is,
09:12how did we get to represent Hortman's house, and it was proactively or not. The circumstances unfolded in
09:18Brooklyn Park this morning that we assisted the Champlin Police Department on a shooting. That
09:23shooting was made aware by one of our sergeants that it was at Senator Hoffman's home. In hearing that,
09:28that very intuitive sergeant asked our officers to go check on Melissa Hortman's home, a representative
09:35that lives in our community, just proactively as due diligence to swing by. That police officer
09:41and his partner pulled down the street when they arrived at Melissa's house. They noticed that there was
09:46a police vehicle in the driveway with the lights, emergency lights on, and what appeared to be a
09:50police officer at the door coming out of the house. When our officers confronted them, the individual
09:57immediately fired upon the officers who exchanged gunfire, and the suspect retreated back into the home.
10:02Was this an actual police officer or an impersonating police officer?
10:08Yes, the question is, was it a real person or impersonating a police officer? It was not a real
10:14police officer. This is somebody that clearly had been impersonating a police officer. Again,
10:19using the trust of this badge and this uniform to manipulate their way into the home.
10:23So Chief Early, Janice Schwertle, Pair 11, the person not only was wearing a badge,
10:28was in this police officer when they approached their victims. They had a car with lights and signs?
10:35Yes, the question is, how, what kind of vehicle, how were they dressed? They did drive a vehicle that looked
10:41exactly like an SUV squad car. It was equipped with lights, emergency lights that looked exactly like
10:48a police vehicle. And yes, they were wearing a vest with taser, other equipment that would,
10:56a badge very similar to mine, that no question, if they were in this room, you would assume that they
11:00are a police officer. Chief Early, can you describe the moments after that played out? You said the person
11:08went into the hall, and then can you help us understand the next 10, 15 minutes of, you know,
11:14how we got from where we're at now? Yeah, briefly, although I'm just going to remind us that this is
11:19an absolute inactive investigation. We have thousands of people sheltered in place in the city of Brooklyn
11:24Park right now. We are in an extensive manhunt involving hundreds and hundreds of police officers
11:29and SWAT teams searching, gritting off areas, as we believe confidently the suspect had fled out the
11:35back of the house after being confronted by the police. Very briefly, after the officers had
11:41exchanged gunfire and the suspect retreated into Melissa's home, they immediately went up to the
11:45threshold and looked in and seen a male that was down, clearly had been struck by gunfire. They
11:50made limited penetration, grabbed a hold of the male and drug him out to safety to attempt first aid.
11:55However, he was pronounced dead shortly after that. At that point, the officers surrounded the house,
12:00got additional resources and SWAT resources, and then ultimately went in with a drone,
12:07identifying a female in the home. How far were part of the two scenes? How many miles?
12:14I would say somewhere around five or six miles apart. How much do you know about if the person
12:21that was impersonating an officer who allegedly shot these people, did they knock on the door and people
12:25came to the door or the person breaking into the home? Yeah, it was knocking on the door and asking the
12:30person to come out absolutely impersonating a police officer. We do have the suspect's car.
12:36Suspect is on foot. That is what the large scale search is currently going on. I just remind residents
12:42of Brooklyn Park, I know it's been a long time, but those that are in the grid that we gave the alert
12:46out to continue to shelter in place. We're also reminding them that if somebody comes to the door
12:51and they knock on the door and claiming to be a police officer, please do a couple things. One,
12:55call 911 and confirm that the officer belongs there. If they are a police officer, dispatch will be able to
13:00confirm that that person is a police officer. Also, we've informed all our officers in Brooklyn Park that
13:04they are not to approach anybody by themselves. They're to approach in pairs, meaning two officers.
13:09So if there's only one officer outside the door, do not answer the door and call 911. If it's a Brooklyn
13:16Park police officer or any of our partners that are assisting, they will come in pairs of two or more.
13:20I'm sorry, one at a time.
13:29We do know that he did, but I'm going to hold that back as part of the investigation right now.
13:37This is a very large scale search, so we have detained several people and questioned them,
13:41but we do not have anybody in custody at this time.
13:49We have people of interest that we are looking for.
13:51Michelle, for the Minnesota reformer, other than that these are two Democratic lawmakers,
13:56is there anything else to suggest that this is politically more related?
14:03Again, I want to hold back most of the information. This is part of the investigation
14:06that we completed. This is rapidly evolving, just occurred a few hours ago and we're trying
14:10to sort it out. We have partners from the FBI, the BCA, the Hemingway Sheriff's Office,
14:15and almost every suburban agency in our community helping us with this. So it's very complex and working on
14:20it. But I will tell you, when we did a search of the vehicle, there wasn't a manifesto that identified
14:24many lawmakers and other officials. We immediately made alerts to the state who took action on alerting
14:31them and providing security where necessary. And I'll stop there. Chief, thank you very much.
14:37We're going to take one more question.
14:40You used the word targeted, and that's kind of the long lines of Michelle's question in terms of
14:45politics, Democrats, and Republicans. These are both Democrats lawmakers. You said the word targeted.
14:50So targeted because they're politicians or targeted because they're Democrats?
14:53Well, so the question is, is were they targeted? And when I use the term, why am I using the term?
15:00As Chief really noted, there was a list of individuals. And the individuals that were targeted
15:05in this situation, we're on that list. And so when we're looking at that, as Chief really said,
15:10it's far too early in the investigation to be able to provide information. But I do think we'll
15:14be in a position where we'll be able to develop the motivation behind these attacks, and we'll be
15:20able to provide more information as this unfolds. And so that's part of the reason we're using it,
15:24is I think there's some preliminary information that is telling us kind of where this is headed,
15:28but we need a lot more work done by all the teams that are here working on that to be able to provide
15:32that with you with a degree of accuracy. Thanks. Thank you. Quite a few. We're good. Thank you.
15:40Yep. Hold on. Colonel, do you want to talk about the rally at the Capitol?
15:44Thank you. Good morning. Colonel Boguevich with the State Patrol. We are aware of the
15:50demonstrations across Minnesota, including the Capitol and across the nation. We will work with
15:55our state partners and our local partners to provide security and safety for those that attend.
16:00The question was, will we have a sniper at the Capitol? We don't discuss our security plans
16:10on the Capitol grounds. Colonel, thank you. Thank you very much, everybody, for being here.
16:17We will, I think you do have, and if you haven't, let me know, but we do have a place where you can
16:24send inquiries for the interview requests, information requests. We have our state emergency
16:28operations center set up. If you need information on how to make those requests and make sure that we
16:33see them, let me know.
16:46And if we change theoting没有. Thank you.
16:47Thanks.
16:48And, of course, make sure to be our project we've addressed at the Capitol that has done.
16:48You've been systolic and are finding a special. We need to email to talk about the
16:58airport. But, at least a separate vehicle, that's two or three days ago. Even though let's
17:04get caught up.
17:06Where are we now?
17:08What are we trying to include doing?
17:11Where are you that МУЗЫКА
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