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Anoka County commissioners denounce violent attacks on state legislators, urge civility
Summary
Anoka County Board members reacted to the June 14 attacks on Minnesota legislators, offered condolences and called for kinder public discourse, and thanked law enforcement for follow-up on threats.
The Anoka County Board of Commissioners used chair remarks at its meeting to condemn the June 14 attacks on state legislators and to urge residents to reduce hostile rhetoric in public and online.
The board chair called the events “horrific” and said the political attack on two state legislators “must not be normalized as one of the risks of being a public servant.” The chair added that he and his wife had been with Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette the evening before the attack and asked residents to “keep them in your thoughts and prayers” as they recover.
The chair thanked Sheriff Wise for following up on threatening social-media comments the chair had flagged and said the county should take such posts “more seriously.” County Attorney (present at the meeting) recalled working with the legislators and said they “helped advance the interests of Anoka County,” adding that Hoffman had worked across the aisle to secure funding for 50 beds at the Anoka Metro Regional Treatment Center.
Commissioner Jepsen said elected officials and residents alike must model better behavior and avoid contributing to hateful rhetoric. “Silence is acceptance,” Jepsen said, and he urged residents to respond to hateful speech by doing positive acts in their communities, from volunteering to attending houses of worship.
Commissioner Heinrich described the Hoffmans as “good people” and said their survival after multiple gunshot wounds was “a miracle.” He and others who spoke noted they did not always agree politically with the legislators but stressed that policy disagreement is not a justification for hate or violence.
The county attorney described a rise in violent crime locally and nationally and praised the county board’s prior votes supporting adequate jail facilities. He urged elected officials to model the “kind of behavior, frankly, that Melissa Hortman and John Hoffman exhibited” and praised local reporting that honored the victims and covered county issues.
The board did not take any formal legislative action at the meeting on the attacks; the remarks were made during the chair’s remarks portion of the agenda and were followed by routine business.
