Ex-governor candidate, wife say family is ‘struggling to comprehend’ daughter’s killing

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ST. CLOUD – Former Minnesota gubernatorial candidate Jeff Johnson and his wife, Dr. Julie Johnson, said Thursday they are “struggling to comprehend this unimaginable reality” after their daughter was found stabbed to death last weekend.

“We are heartbroken beyond words by the tragic and senseless loss of our beloved daughter,” they said in a statement posted on Julie Johnson’s Facebook page just before 1:30 a.m. Feb. 12. “Hallie was a bright light in our lives and in the lives of so many others. She was kind, compassionate and full of promise. The pain of losing her in this way is something no family should ever have to endure.”

Hallie Tobler’s husband, 23-year-old Dylan M. Tobler, was charged in Stearns County District Court this week with with one felony count of second-degree murder for reportedly stabbing her to death in their St. Cloud home.

Jeff Johnson, a former aviation professor at St. Cloud State University and former St. Cloud City Council member, announced his candidacy for governor last May. In last week’s GOP straw poll, Johnson earned less than 1% of the vote. On Monday, he suspended his campaign in the wake of his daughter’s death.

For the past two years, Hallie Tobler, 22, had worked part time for the city of St. Cloud in its IT department.

St. Cloud-based Simplicity Health, where Julie Johnson works, describes Johnson as a “horse mom” to her two daughters who ride and train in dressage and says they also enjoy scuba diving, reading and watching Hallmark Christmas movies.

According to court documents, a witness went to Hallie Tobler’s home on Feb. 7 after not hearing from her for a few days and found her dead with multiple stab wounds. The witness told police Dylan Tobler was in the living room “and appeared to have tried to kill himself,” the complaint states.

According to state court records, Dylan Tobler was previously charged with a misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct from a June 19 incident in which he choked his wife.

At the time, Hallie Tobler told police her husband “has psychosis [and] a history of aggressive behavior” and that he had made vague suicide threats before leaving their home. She said she believed her husband was having delusions and she was alarmed by his behavior, documents state.

Court records show Dylan Tobler pleaded guilty to a petty misdemeanor and agreed to pay a $150 fine. He was sentenced Jan. 27.

In their statement, the Johnsons said they wanted to acknowledge the importance of mental health support.

Anna Marie’s Alliance, an emergency shelter for domestic violence victims in St. Cloud, released a statement saying its employees “grieve alongside Hallie Tobler’s family, friends and all who knew and loved her.”

“While we may never fully know the details, we do know that mental illness and relationship abuse are two separate issues that can sometimes overlap,” the statement says. “Research shows that the causes of relationship abuse are complex, but a common thread is power and control. Research also shows that the presence of a gun or weapons in the home, as well as strangulation or attempted strangulation, dramatically increase the chance of homicide.”