The wife of the man accused of killing Minnesota lawmakers has filed for divorce. Court records show that Jenny Lynne Boelter submitted the petition in Sibley County earlier this month.
Her husband, 58-year-old Vance Boelter, faces federal and state charges for murder and attempted murder. Authorities say he shot and killed Minnesota House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark. He also allegedly shot state Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette at their homes on June 14. The shootings happened in two separate Twin Cities homes. Officials have described the attacks as politically motivated.
Jenny Boelter’s petition was filed as a “dissolution with child.” The exact reasons for the divorce are unknown. Judge Amber Donley has ordered that all current and future records in the case remain sealed. These documents will be treated as confidential. This decision means that no details about the divorce or its timeline are available to the public.
Nearly two weeks after the deadly shootings, Jenny Boelter released a statement through her attorney. She called her husband’s actions “a betrayal of everything we hold true as tenets of our Christian faith.”She said the violence shocked, heartbroken, and blindsided her family. She added that their beliefs and values do not support such killings. She wrote, “We feel appalled and horrified by what occurred, and our hearts carry incredible heaviness for the victims of this unfathomable tragedy.”
According to federal court documents, Jenny Boelter and some of her children left their Green Isle home shortly after the shootings. They drove about 150 miles away, near Lake Mille Lacs. Law enforcement contacted her by phone and arranged to meet her at a nearby gas station. An FBI special agent wrote in an affidavit that Jenny had two firearms, passports, and around $10,000 in cash in her vehicle.
Authorities said she was cooperative during the meeting. However, she was not initially clear about what her husband might have done. She later told agents that Vance had sent her a message earlier that day. He told her to take the children to her parents’ house and warned that “there may be people with guns coming to the house.”
Jenny Boelter also told investigators that she and her husband were “preppers.” This means they prepared for major or catastrophic events. Soon after the attacks, investigators searched their Green Isle home. They discovered more than 50 firearms and a large container of ammunition.
Authorities have not charged Jenny Boelter with any crimes. In her June 27 statement, she said she fully cooperated with investigators and followed all their requests. “We are grateful for the diligent and professional efforts of the authorities to fully investigate these crimes,” she said. “We thank law enforcement for apprehending Vance and protecting others from further harm.”
Vance Boelter remains in custody. If convicted on federal murder charges, he could face the death penalty. No court hearings have yet been scheduled in Jenny Boelter’s divorce case. Her attorney declined to comment on the matter.
This tragic case has left Minnesota’s political community in shock. The deaths of Melissa and Mark Hortman, and the shootings of John and Yvette Hoffman, have sparked widespread grief. As the legal process moves forward, both the criminal case and the divorce will continue to draw public attention.
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