Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, were killed by an individual impersonating a police officer. Hortman was the former speaker of the Minnesota House of

Melissa Hortman, a Minnesota lawmaker who was gunned down in what is described as a politically motivated attack, earned degrees at Boston University and Harvard.

Days after authorities say a gunman posing as a police officer fatally shot their parents and wounded two others, the children of Democratic Minnesota State Rep. Melissa Hortman, are speaking out about their loss.

Vance Boelter, the man accused of shooting two Minnesota state legislators and their spouses, visited the homes of four lawmakers over the course of a few hours early Saturday. Federal prosecutors have charged Boelter,

Sophie and Colin Hortman are responding to the fatal shooting of their parents, Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman and Mark Hortman.

Before a suspect was ever named in the shootings, conspiracy theorists and opportunists jumped at the chance to blame their political opponents.

Minnesota state Sen. John Hoffman (D) and his wife, Yvette, who were both shot in their home by the suspect who is believed to have later killed state Rep. Melissa Hortman (D) and her husband, Mark, in a “politically motivated assassination” on Saturday, shared an update on their condition, noting they were “both incredibly lucky to be alive.”

Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband were killed, and state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife were wounded in politically motivated shootings early Saturday, Gov. Tim Walz said. Authorities have also identified a suspect who is still at large.