MINNEAPOLIS — The attorneys for Vance Boelter on Monday asked a Hennepin County judge to issue a gag order on state Sen. John Hoffman, his wife, Yvette, and their daughter, Hope, to prevent them from speaking publicly as his state case on murder and attempted murder charges proceeds.

Public defenders Bryan Leary and Raissa Carpenter filed the motion in Hennepin County District Court asking Judge Juan Hoyos to bar the Hoffmans and any other potential witnesses in Boelter’s trial from making “any further extrajudicial statements” to the media until a verdict is entered against him. His trial is scheduled to begin Nov. 2.

The motion follows a pre-trial hearing Friday, where John and Yvette Hoffman spoke to the media and Yvette referred to Boelter as a “piece of shit” and referred to the court process as a “clown show.”

Hennepin County prosecutors Krista White and Paige Starkey responded to the motion and had “no objection” to a gag order being put in place. But they emphasized it needs to include “attorneys, parties, witnesses, jurors, and employees and officers of the court.” They said the gag order should also include Boelter “and anyone speaking, writing, or posting publicly on his behalf.”

Boelter, who remains in the Hennepin County Jail, has been writing extensively on an online blog that is being posted through an unknown intermediary.

In a statement, the Hoffmans opposed the request, saying they did not choose to become a part of the case, and will not interfere with the judicial process or attempt to influence a jury.

“The First Amendment does not disappear at the courthouse door. Any attempt to silence victims should face the highest level of scrutiny, and we will vigorously defend our right to have a voice,” the statement said. “We respect the defendant’s constitutional right to a fair trial. But victims have constitutional rights too, including the right to speak about what happened to us and how this violence continues to affect our families.”

Boelter pleaded guilty in federal court earlier this year to shooting the Hoffmans and killing Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark. He was given two consecutive life sentences plus 40 years in prison. His state trial features several additional charges and, according to Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty, seeks to add another layer of criminal accountability should Boelter ever be pardoned for his federal crimes.

John Hoffman questioned Boelter’s defense attorneys on Friday after learning Boelter plans to argue he was attempting a lawful arrest when he shot the Hoffmans and attempted to shoot their daughter Hope and killed the Hortmans.

“The dude showed up at our door dressed as a police officer — gun was pulled in my face as I opened the door. I mean there’s no defense to that,” he said. “It brought back a lot of trauma from 15 months ago. It was a tough day to hear all of that. It makes you wonder is the public defender’s office really doing what they’re called to do?”

Every person charged with a crime in Minnesota has the right to legal counsel, including access to a public defender if they can’t afford a private attorney. The Minnesota Board of Public Defense has set a best practice for its attorneys to use “client-centered” representation instead of “attorney-centered” representation. That process asks defense attorneys to “recognize and respect the client’s authority, ability and right to dictate the direction” of their case.

Leary and Carpenter have been dogged in their defense of Boelter since he made his first appearance on state charges in August. They have argued for Boelter to be allowed to speak directly to the court, and, when Hoyos did not let Boelter speak, Leary read Boelter’s statement for him.

Boelter has argued that he was a known entity in Minnesota’s political community — including making five trips to Washington, D.C., using taxpayer money — and that there was a vast conspiracy undergirding his politically motivated attacks in the early morning hours of June 14, 2025.

In a motion filed earlier this month, Boelter’s attorneys included a photo of him with U.S. Rep. Angie Craig and noted that he “was appointed by Governor [Mark] Dayton and by Governor (Tim) Walz to The Governor’s Workforce Development Board.”

Prosecutors have objected to the legality of Boelter’s comments in court and the extensive postings he has made on his Substack since being removed from federal prison to the jail as his case proceeds. They have sought to limit his access to evidence because, they believe, his posts show he is “eager for public attention for his delusional narrative of attempting a ‘citizen’s arrest’ of the victims and other baseless claims.”

On Saturday, Boelter wrote about going through a “shake down” and being put in lockdown inside his cell at the jail because of his posts online.

“Free speech isn’t the same in Minnesota,” Boelter wrote, and then compared state repression to the Gaza Strip, criticized U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, and said authorities were scrambling to “cut me off.”

“If I have nothing important to say,” Boelter wrote, “why are they acting like the sky is falling that I’m able to post to the public?”

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