The Minnesota lawmaker who survived an allegedly targeted political shooting last weekend is now speaking up about the attack that nearly killed him and his wife. NBC News reports that state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette Hoffman, are both still recovering in a local hospital after they were attacked in their Champlin home early Saturday—just before police say the gunman fatally shot state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman, in a nearby suburb. The Hoffmans are now relaying what happened the night of the shooting, which started after they'd returned from dinner.
In a statement shared by KARE, the Hoffmans say they and their adult daughter, Hope, were woken up around 2am by loud pounding on their front door by someone claiming to be a cop. The Hoffmans say that when John Hoffman opened the door, he was confronted by the suspect pointing a gun at him, leading him to lunge at the gunman. John Hoffman was shot nine times, at which point his wife rushed to slam the door shut, which she succeeded in doing—but not before she herself was shot nine times, per their statement. Hope, meanwhile, managed to lock the door and call 911, they say.
"Her brave actions and quick thinking triggered the notice to public safety officials that a politically motivated act was potentially underway," the Hoffmans note of their daughter. The couple also thanks first responders and other law enforcement agents working the case, and grieves the Hortmans. "We are heartbroken to know that our friends Melissa and Mark Hortman were assassinated," they write, noting that their daughters attended school together. "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." A GoFundMe set up to aid the Hoffmans in their recovery had brought in more than $200,000 as of Friday morning. (More Minnesota stories.)
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