The man believed to have shot two Democratic lawmakers in Minnesota, one fatally, had papers in his car that indicated he may have been planning to target one of the “No Kings” protests taking place in cities across the country on Saturday.
Minnesota state police posted a photograph of papers in the suspect’s car that had “NO KINGS” written on them. That’s the slogan for protests taking place in hundreds of cities that were organized by liberal groups to protest President Trump and his administration.
Organizers of the protests said that they were canceling all of the planned events in Minnesota after a recommendation to do so from Gov. Tim Walz and other officials.
Several thousand people had gathered outside of the State Capitol in St. Paul by early Saturday afternoon, about 25 miles from the shootings.
Governor Walz said that people should “not attend any political rallies” in the state until the suspect was taken into custody.
The police said that the suspect had a list of targets and that both of the state lawmakers who were shot were on the list.
The gunman impersonated a police officer, the authorities said, and killed State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, at their home before going to the home of State Senator John A. Hoffman and shooting him and his wife, Yvette. The Hoffmans are being treated at a hospital.
Bernard Mokam and Ernesto Londoño contributed reporting.
Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs reports on national stories across the United States with a focus on criminal justice. He is from upstate New York.
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