Day of mourning: Biden pays respects, thousands pass through Capitol in honor of Hortmans

Former President Joe Biden joined Minnesotans by the thousands who paid their respects to Melissa and Mark Hortman at the Minnesota Capitol on Friday, as the couple received one of the state’s highest honors.

Lying in state is a rare honor typically reserved for former governors, U.S. senators, and other high-ranking public officials. Melissa Hortman, a former House speaker and DFL House leader, was the first woman to receive such a tribute in the state’s history after she and her husband Mark were shot and killed earlier this month in their Brooklyn Park home. They were accompanied by their golden retriever, Gilbert, who was also shot and later euthanized.

Melissa Hortman was known as an unflashy, no-nonsense leader who took care of her team and wanted to get things done. Mark Hortman worked as a program manager at a tech firm in St. Louis Park and enjoyed mountain biking, competitive pool, home beer brewing and woodworking. They have two adult children, Colin and Sophie.

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4:22 p.m. - Former President Joe Biden joined the thousands of Minnesotans on Friday who paid their respects to slain DFL House Leader Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark at the State Capitol. Biden arrived shortly after 4 p.m. and proceeded alone to the cleared rotunda and paused for about a minute in front of the caskets. He then knelt for a few moments and left the area.

The politically motivated attack that took the lives of the Hortmans also left both state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette Hoffman, seriously injured with several gunshot wounds. Vance Boelter is accused of the shootings of both couples.

While in the Twin Cities, Biden visited the hospital where John Hoffman is recovering. A selfie-style photo shows Biden smiling with the Hoffmans and their daughter, Hope.

— Nathaniel Minor

4:10 p.m. - Beth Crandall, 58, has lived in Brooklyn Park for 25 years. She lives not too far from the Hortmans’ house. Crandall sleeps with her window open, and said she heard gunshots at 3:30 a.m. on June 14.

“As soon as I heard the shots — pop, pop, pop — I was reaching to call the police. But I heard the sirens immediately and thought they must be right on top of whatever happened.”

Crandall started scrolling social media and found reports that there had been another shooting. “They were starting to report that they thought it was the senator. And as soon as I heard that, I was worried that it was Melissa, because I know where she lived,” Crandall said. “I was horrified to learn that she had died. I gasped when I heard it. I thought maybe she had survived.”

Crandall described Hortman as a kind neighbor and personable representative. The two met while Hortman was running her first campaign in 1998.

3:37 p.m. - Gilbert the golden retriever was never alone as he lay in state at the Minnesota Capitol on Friday alongside his owners, House DFL Leader Melissa Hortman and Mark Hortman.

A cadre of service dogs took turns guarding entrances to the Capitol rotunda, where a brass-colored urn decorated in tiny paw prints holding Gilbert’s ashes rested between the caskets bearing the Hortmans.

Every so often, a new member of the canine honor guard would relieve one of their fellow soldiers in protecting Gilbert, who was injured in the shooting that killed the Hortmans and later euthanized.

Gilbert, 4, wound up the Hortmans’ beloved pet somewhat by accident. Melissa Hortman was training him to be a service dog through Helping Paws. The family previously trained a black lab through the organization. They took on Gilbert’s training in 2021, but he was too friendly to be a successful working dog. He flunked the course and became the family pet instead.

Angela Folie of St. Louis Park brought her service dog Pepper to take a turn standing guard. Folie said Pepper is her third dog provided by Helping Paws. She met Melissa Hortman through the organization. “The Hortmans have given so much not only to Helping Paws but also just the state of Minnesota,” Folie said, “and so to be here, to be part of this is just very inspiring and it’s comforting.”

3:35 p.m. - The Minnesota Star Tribune spoke to several mourners outside the Capitol.

— Matt Gilmer

3:30 p.m. - Rebecca Crooks-Stratton, 44, came to the Capitol in a rainbow ribbon skirt. She brought sweet grass with her to lay at the memorial, a sacred plant in many tribal cultures. Crooks-Stratton is a member of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux community, and formerly served as secretary treasurer for the tribe.

“Her friendship with the tribes and interactions when I was a tribal leader was just phenomenal,” she said of Hortman. “She understood tribal sovereignty and understood how to work with the tribes.”

Crooks-Stratton participated in the first sovereignty day Hortman held in 2019. The event, which serves as an open forum for the 11 tribal nations in the state to engage with legislators, is a significant feat in Hortman’s legacy.

— Sofia Barnett

3:15 p.m. - Texas Supreme Court Justice Debrah Lehrmann and her husband, Greg, flew in from Austin on Friday morning to pay their respects to the Hortmans, with whom they were friends.

“Melissa is the kind of person you’re drawn to,” Lehrmann said. She described Hortman as “the most reasonable, nice, considerate, deliberate” person who was “always smiling.”

The last time the Lehrmanns and Hortmans had dinner was last summer at a sports bar in Boston, where they could escape and “not talk about the law,” she said.

— Emmy Martin

When he was a freshman member in 2006, she led his orientation and showed him the ropes. Hortman quickly became the person Dominguez went to when he had questions about bills. “She was really, really kind — the person that listens to you,” he said.

Hortman’s death leaves a “void” at the Legislature, Dominguez said as he walked up the steps of the Capitol.

He hopes that legislators come together in the wake of her death. But he added that current legislators he knows are scared for the safety of their families because of the Hortmans’ assassination.

— Emmy Martin

2:30 p.m. - Ben Lien, 41; Carlos Mariani, 67; and Tony Jurgens, 60, are all former members of the Minnesota House of Representatives.

“It’s somber,” Jurgens said of the scene inside the Capitol. “It’s surreal.”

“Everyone’s coming in with a lot of respect and a lot of reflection,” said Lien. “You know, what does this mean for current state of affairs? What does it mean for politics? What does it mean for Minnesota? How do we all heal and move forward?”

Mariani said it’s going to take leadership from current representatives.

“And from the public too, to expect that out of their leaders,” Jurgens added. “To demand it.”

— Sofia Barnett

— Emmy Martin and Sofia Barnett

2:05 p.m. - Many of the hundreds of mourners waited in line so they could say one final “thank you” to Melissa Hortman.

Arline Datu of St. Paul, who, with the faith-based advocacy group ISAIAH, fought for progressive bills in 2023 like paid family leave and voting rights for formerly incarcerated people, said those wouldn’t have been possible without Hortman. She intended to offer a “prayer of gratitude” as she passed by the Hortmans’ caskets, she said.

Former Rep. Frank Hornstein said Hortman empowered him and Sen. Scott Dibble to author and pass what turned out to be a transformational transportation bill during the 2023 session. Hornstein said he attended the event today to “thank her for who she was.”

“I just have gratitude in my heart,” added Dibble.

2 p.m. - Nash Marquette, 28, said he came to the Capitol from Shoreview to be present for “what is clearly a huge historic event.”

“I agree with everything that [Hortman] did,” he said. “It’s a really serious thing that happened and it’s important that I be here for it.”

Jack Verchota, 25, from Longfellow, brought a dozen white roses to honor the Hortmans. He said coming to the Capitol was the “decent thing to do.”

— Emmy Martin and Sofia Barnett

1:50 p.m. - Both U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith are in Minnesota today for the Hortmans’ lying in state at the Capitol and plan to meet with the Hortman family.

“I am dedicated to being there to celebrate Melissa and Mark’s life, and I don’t know what the schedule is going to be,” Smith said in an interview this week. “I will not miss important votes in the Senate, and so I will have to be figuring out how to balance that with my colleagues.”

Klobuchar’s office said Friday afternoon that she was en route to D.C. for Friday evening votes on other bills but it’s unclear if she will return to Minnesota for the funeral.

Klobuchar’s office said Friday afternoon that it will be difficult for her to get back for the funeral.

“Given the gravity of the budget bill, Sen. Klobuchar will most likely not be able to miss votes tomorrow. Her husband John will be attending the funeral and if she has to be in Washington she will watch the service via livestream,” her spokeswoman said. “She truly wants to be at the funeral but the Hortman children were very understanding of the situation when she spoke with them at the state Capitol today.”

— Sydney Kashiwagi

“I was introduced by a mutual friend. ... As I pursued my career in service, she just was a real champion for women,” Starr said as she stood in line to enter the Capitol.

Throughout their careers, Starr said she and Hortman stayed in touch. With tears forming in her eyes, Starr said the first world that she would use to describe Hortman is “true.”

Kim Lowe, from St. Paul, remembered Hortman was “always funny.”

“You’re gonna hear that many times. Very funny, very practical. And Mark loved Melissa, you could just tell.”

— Emmy Martin

“Even if you didn’t know her, you did,” Klein said, noting many Minnesotans got to see Hortman’s work recapped on television and in newspapers.

— Ryan Faircloth

1:20 p.m. - Kiko the golden retriever comforted mourners at the memorial to the Hortmans outside the House chamber. Like the Hortmans’ dog, Gilbert, who was wounded in the assassination and had to be euthanized, Kiko started her life on a path to becoming a service dog.

Like Gilbert, she was too friendly to be an effective working dog. Kiko’s owner, Anne Todd, of St. Paul, said as she waited outside for the doors to open that the connection to Gilbert compelled her to pay her respects to the Hortmans. She didn’t know the late Minnesota House speaker but was becoming more engaged in politics.

“I feel like eventually we would’ve crossed paths, and I feel like she could’ve been a best friend,” Todd said. “We would’ve walked dogs together.”

1:08 p.m. - Traci Intihar, 61, from Brooklyn Park, knew Melissa Hortman since the early 1990s. They met at a community caucus event in their neighborhood before a local election, back when Hortman was still in law school.

Intihar and her friend Andrea Weihe, 58, from Circle Pines, stood in line outside the Capitol to pay their respects to Hortman because of “what she represented.”

The 61-year-old recently retired after working for 39 years as an elementary school teacher in the Anoka-Hennepin school district. Intihar last spoke with Hortman two months ago at a Caribou Coffee to talk education policy. It’s something Hortman did often, coming to these “Coffee and Politics” meetings in jeans and a sweatshirt to connect with her community, she said.

Intihar and her husband live on Edinburgh Golf Course, across from the Hortmans’ home. She recalled Hortman congratulating her on her twin daughters’ recent graduation from college this spring.

— Emmy Martin

They held hands in a prolonged moment of silence in front of the Hortmans’ caskets. A few at a time, lawmakers solemnly passed through. Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy, a longtime friend of Hortman’s, cupped her hand over her mouth as she quietly cried in front of the caskets.

Mourners wiped tears from their eyes, made signs of the Cross or bowed their heads in quiet moments of grief before making their way upstairs to memorials outside the House chamber bearing hundreds of flowers, photos, candles and other mementos.

GOP House Speaker Lisa Demuth filed in shortly after Walz alongside her husband and state Rep. Jim Nash. Demuth, who worked closely with Hortman this year in the tied House, wiped tears from her eyes and embraced her husband.

— Allison Kite

12:31 p.m. - Sheryll Mennicke, 69, from St. Paul, said she came to pay respects to Hortman, who she called a major advocate for people with disabilities, like Mennicke’s son.

Mennicke recalled bringing her son to the Capitol in his wheelchair years ago and running into Hortman on the front lawn.

“She stopped and talked to us about what was going on. She said, how is your son, and how are the services? And can you think of other things the state could do to help?” Mennicke said. “But it was just the way that she really listened. She would ask these open ended questions, and then would just listen.”

— Sofia Barnett

12:20 p.m. - More than 400 people lined up outside the Capitol ahead of doors opening to the public at noon. The line stretched down the sidewalk of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard outside of the Capitol.

— Nathaniel Minor

Bright yellow lilies in a tropical bouquet sat atop Mark Hortman’s casket. Between them, the ashes of their beloved golden retriever, Gilbert, rested in an urn, his own bouquet at his side. American and Minnesota flags folded into tight triangles and a fern for each of the Hortmans sat in front of them.

— Allison Kite

11:33 a.m. - Vance Boelter made a brief court appearance in federal court Friday morning in St. Paul Friday, where proceedings were continued after his public defender Manny Atwal revealed that he has remained on suicide watch since his June 15 arrest and raised concerns about conditions at the Sherburne County Jail.

Atwal said Boelter has been placed in a cell where the lights are on 24 hours a day, and he sleeps on a mat while the doors next to him slam, so it’s noisy. It’s been difficult to speak with him, she said, because he is so sleep deprived.

“Your honor, I haven’t slept in 12 to 14 days,” Boelter told Magistrate Judge Douglas Micko. “I’d also like to state I’ve never been suicidal, and I’m not suicidal now.”

— Sarah Nelson

10:53 a.m. - Mike Starr was the first person in line to get inside the Capitol, arriving at the south doors, he said, at 6:30 a.m. The retired veteran from Oak Grove said he met Melissa Hortman during his unsuccessful state Senate run in 2012, then observed her career over the following years as Hortman ascended the ranks at the state Legislature.

“She meant quite a bit to the state,” said Starr, 71. “She stood up for the people and she would do what she had to do to take care of the people. And unfortunately someone didn’t like that.”

Starr, a Democrat, said he hopes Minnesotans can turn away from divisive, increasingly violent politics and instead resolve their differences by sitting down and talking with each other. For today though, Starr said it was important for him to pay his respects to Hortman and her husband, Mark. When he walks by their caskets later today, he said, he’ll offer one simple comment.

“Thank you for what you did for Minnesota.”

10:30 a.m. - An estimated 1,500 people attended a candlelight vigil in honor of the Hortmans outside the State Capitol last week. A private funeral for the Hortmans will be held on Saturday morning.

While it’s unclear how many people will attend today, previous memorials have drawn large crowds. Thousands of people waited for hours in January, 1978 for the chance to briefly file by the casket of U.S. Sen. Hubert H. Humphrey. Some 7,000 were at the Capitol in 1936 to honor Gov. Floyd B. Olson.

There are several paid parking facilities on the Capitol complex and in nearby downtown St. Paul. Limited metered on-street parking is also available. The Capitol is also served by Metro Transit’s Green Line and several bus lines.

— Nathaniel Minor

10:15 a.m. - The Hortman family dog, Gilbert, will also be honored today at the State Capitol. Gilbert will be the first dog to lie in state in Minnesota history. The dog was originally meant to be a service animal. But Gilbert was just too happy-go-lucky for a working dog’s life.

— Greta Kaul

10 a.m. - Melissa Hortman’s colleagues remember her as an unflashy, no-nonsense leader who didn’t seek the spotlight, took care of her team, relished organization and, above all, wanted to get stuff done. Her legislative work included progress on increased education spending, paid family leave, gun regulations, free school lunches.

Read more on Hortman’s legacy here.