‘Stuff of nightmares': Alleged killer stalked lawmakers, stopped at 4 homes the night of killings

Federal charges filed Monday laid out the shocking scope of Vance Boelter's alleged plans to assassinate state lawmakers before he fled the Twin Cities, evading law enforcement for 43 hours before his arrest in a field near his rural home.
Boelter, 57, of Green Isle, Minn., has been charged with six federal crimes, including stalking and murder, for the killing of Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and the shooting of Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette. Acting U.S. Attorney for Minnesota Joe Thompson said those charges carry the potential for a death sentence.
Law enforcement officers cross a farm field after searching a wooded area near where Vance Boelter has been apprehended on Sunday, June 15, 2025. (Jeff Wheeler/The Minnesota Star Tribune/TNS)
'It is no exaggeration to say that his crimes are the stuff of nightmares,' Thompson said.
The 20-page federal complaint against Boelter provided the most detail yet about what happened Saturday morning through Sunday night, including that Boelter went to the homes of four Minnesota lawmakers. He also encountered law enforcement in two cities before fleeing Brooklyn Park and setting off the largest manhunt in state history.
'This was a political assassination,' Thompson said. 'Which is not a word we use very often here in the United States, let alone here in Minnesota. It's a chilling attack on our democracy, on our way of life. It's only the most recent example of political extremism in this country, and I hope it's a wake-up call for everyone that people can disagree without being evil.'
One of the previously unknown lawmakers targeted, Sen. Ann Rest, DFL-New Hope, said in a statement Monday she was informed Boelter parked near her home early Saturday.
Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson addresses the media regarding the Federal charges against Vance Boelter, who has been taken into custody on Sunday evening, during a press conference at the United States Courthouse in Minneapolis on Monday, June 16, 2025. (Elizabeth Flores/The Minnesota Star Tribune/TNS)
Boelter is now federally charged with two counts of stalking Rep. Hortman and Sen. Hoffman using interstate facilities; two counts of murder for Melissa and Mark Hortman; and two counts of using a firearm to shoot the Hortmans and Hoffmans.
On top of the federal charges, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said she intends to pursue first-degree state murder charges against Boelter in District Court.
The federal complaint says Boelter used extensive planning to surveil his potential victims, dressed as a police officer and drove a police-style SUV to the homes of Hoffman, Hortman, Rest and a fourth lawmaker from Maple Grove, who was not named, with the intent to 'inflict fear, injure, and kill members of the Minnesota state legislature and their families.'
It also shows that in the wake of the killings, Boelter texted his family, 'Dad went to war last night … I don't wanna say more because I don't wanna implicate anybody.' Shortly after that his wife received a text message that read, 'Words are not going to explain how sorry I am for this situation.'
At a news conference Monday, Thompson noted that the list of names of political leaders spanned several different notebooks found in multiple locations. He also dispelled the notion of any 'Unabomber-style' manifesto, referencing Ted Kaczynski.
The criminal complaint says that in the notebooks were 'names, and often home addresses, of numerous Minnesota public officials' including Hortman. It included a note that Hortman was married to her 'husband Mark,' that she had two children, and that she was in her 11th term in the Legislature.
Boelter used several websites to search for addresses and personal information of legislators and purchased materials from Fleet Farm to carry out the shootings, including flashlights and decals to create fake license plates that read 'POLICE.' He also wore a silicone mask throughout the night.
When he arrived at the Hoffmans' house, Boelter knocked and repeatedly shouted, 'This is the police. Open the door,' according to the complaint.
When the Hoffmans opened the door, Boelter shined his flashlight in their faces, and allegedly told them there had been a shooting inside the house. He asked them if there were any guns present, according the complaint, and Hoffman said their guns were locked away.
Yvette eventually realized that Boelter was wearing a mask, and the couple told Boelter they knew he was not an officer. Boelter responded by saying something along the lines of: 'This is a robbery,' the complaint says.
Sen. Hoffman tried to push Boelter away from the front door and Boelter then 'shot Senator Hoffman repeatedly.'
Yvette Hoffman tried to shut Boelter outside by closing the door, but he then shot her multiple times, the complaint says.
Boelter then went to the home of another state legislator in Maple Grove who was out of town with family. As Boelter pounded on the door, a doorbell camera caught him saying, 'This is the police. Open this door. This is the police. We have a warrant.'
He then traveled to New Hope toward Rest's home. By that point, law enforcement in the Twin Cities had been alerted that there could be threats on state politicians and police were engaging in proactive investigations.
A New Hope officer dispatched to a home came upon a SUV that resembled a squad car. The complaint reads that the officer approached the SUV and saw a 'bald, white male, staring straight ahead. The officer tried to speak with that man, but he continued staring straight ahead and did not respond.'
Thompson said he believes Boelter was wearing the silicone mask when the New Hope officer pulled up next to him.
The officer then left to continue the wellness check. When the officer returned to the area where the SUV had been parked, it was gone.
'I am so grateful for the heroic work of the New Hope Police Department and its officers. Their quick action saved my life,' Rest said Monday. 'While I am thankful the suspect has been apprehended, I grieve for the loss of Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and I am praying for the recovery of John and Yvette Hoffman.'
Not long after that, the complaint reads, Brooklyn Park police encountered Boelter outside the Hortmans' home. He had a flashlight raised toward the house and as police arrived he fired several shots into the home before entering and killing Melissa and Mark Hortman and shooting and gravely injuring the family dog, Gilbert.
Law enforcement officials said they are still investigating whether Boelter actively shot at police.
'This happened incredibly fast,' said Drew Evans, superintendent of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. 'What I can tell you is the police officers that were there on the scene, that while they were assessing the situation that gunfire erupted.'
Bought e-bike, car
After the slayings, video footage shows Boelter returning to a north Minneapolis house. A witness said he met Boelter at a bus stop at 7 a.m. Saturday at the intersection of 48th Avenue N. and Lyndale Avenue, less than a mile to the east of Boelter's Fremont Avenue apartment. He was holding two duffel bags, and asked to buy the witness' e-bike.
The man agreed, and the two boarded a bus and traveled to the witness' house, where Boelter also asked to buy the man's Buick sedan, which was later abandoned miles away from Boelter's house in Green Isle.
Boelter and the man went to a U.S. Bank branch in Robbinsdale, where Boelter withdrew $2,200, emptying the account, the complaint says. He gave the man 'about $900' for the e-bike and Buick.
About 2:30 a.m. Sunday, police received word about someone riding an e-bike some 2 miles northeast of his family home in Green Isle but were unable to locate him.
The abandoned Buick was found near where the e-bike was sighted. Inside it, police found a handwritten letter directed to the FBI. The letter was signed 'Dr. Vance Luther Boelter,' and included him admitting to being 'the shooter at large in Minnesota,' according to the charges.
After being arrested late Sunday in a field in Sibley County, Boelter was booked into the Hennepin County jail just after 1 a.m. Monday. His bail was set at $5 million, but he is now in federal custody.
Two criminal hearings
Boelter appeared in person in U.S. District Court in St. Paul on Monday afternoon wearing a standard orange jumpsuit. A federal defender was appointed for him after U.S. Magistrate Judge John Docherty said he doubts Boelter's finances could cover attorney costs given the 'severity' of his charges.
Docherty asked how he pronounced his name and Boelter said it is pronounced 'Belter.'
'The 'o' is silent,' Boelter said.
As Assistant U.S. Attorney Bradley Endicott read the criminal charges, Boelter looked on, responding 'yes, sir' to most questions, leaning forward to speak into a microphone and projecting his voice throughout the courtroom. He told Docherty that he understands the charges against him and has read the criminal complaint.
He said he owns his home and works part time, making 'maybe $540 per week,' and has an estimated $20,000 to $30,000 in his bank account.
His next hearing was set for June 27.
Boelter was initially charged by the Hennepin County Attorney's Office with two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of attempted second-degree murder.
Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Judith Cole handled the bail review for the state charges and Judge Juan Hoyos granted a bench warrant with $5 million bail. No court date has been set for his next state appearance.
Moriarty noted earlier in the day that a conviction on a first-degree murder charge in Minnesota carries a sentence of life in prison without parole.
'It is a frightening time we are living in,' Moriarty said. 'We will seek justice and accountability for the victims of all these heinous crimes. We cannot continue this way.'
___
© 2025 The Minnesota Star Tribune.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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American Military News

5 hours ago

• American Military News

‘Stuff of nightmares': Alleged killer stalked lawmakers, stopped at 4 homes the night of killings

Federal charges filed Monday laid out the shocking scope of Vance Boelter's alleged plans to assassinate state lawmakers before he fled the Twin Cities, evading law enforcement for 43 hours before his arrest in a field near his rural home. Boelter, 57, of Green Isle, Minn., has been charged with six federal crimes, including stalking and murder, for the killing of Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and the shooting of Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette. Acting U.S. Attorney for Minnesota Joe Thompson said those charges carry the potential for a death sentence. Law enforcement officers cross a farm field after searching a wooded area near where Vance Boelter has been apprehended on Sunday, June 15, 2025. (Jeff Wheeler/The Minnesota Star Tribune/TNS) 'It is no exaggeration to say that his crimes are the stuff of nightmares,' Thompson said. The 20-page federal complaint against Boelter provided the most detail yet about what happened Saturday morning through Sunday night, including that Boelter went to the homes of four Minnesota lawmakers. He also encountered law enforcement in two cities before fleeing Brooklyn Park and setting off the largest manhunt in state history. 'This was a political assassination,' Thompson said. 'Which is not a word we use very often here in the United States, let alone here in Minnesota. It's a chilling attack on our democracy, on our way of life. It's only the most recent example of political extremism in this country, and I hope it's a wake-up call for everyone that people can disagree without being evil.' One of the previously unknown lawmakers targeted, Sen. Ann Rest, DFL-New Hope, said in a statement Monday she was informed Boelter parked near her home early Saturday. Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson addresses the media regarding the Federal charges against Vance Boelter, who has been taken into custody on Sunday evening, during a press conference at the United States Courthouse in Minneapolis on Monday, June 16, 2025. (Elizabeth Flores/The Minnesota Star Tribune/TNS) Boelter is now federally charged with two counts of stalking Rep. Hortman and Sen. Hoffman using interstate facilities; two counts of murder for Melissa and Mark Hortman; and two counts of using a firearm to shoot the Hortmans and Hoffmans. On top of the federal charges, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said she intends to pursue first-degree state murder charges against Boelter in District Court. The federal complaint says Boelter used extensive planning to surveil his potential victims, dressed as a police officer and drove a police-style SUV to the homes of Hoffman, Hortman, Rest and a fourth lawmaker from Maple Grove, who was not named, with the intent to 'inflict fear, injure, and kill members of the Minnesota state legislature and their families.' It also shows that in the wake of the killings, Boelter texted his family, 'Dad went to war last night … I don't wanna say more because I don't wanna implicate anybody.' Shortly after that his wife received a text message that read, 'Words are not going to explain how sorry I am for this situation.' At a news conference Monday, Thompson noted that the list of names of political leaders spanned several different notebooks found in multiple locations. He also dispelled the notion of any 'Unabomber-style' manifesto, referencing Ted Kaczynski. The criminal complaint says that in the notebooks were 'names, and often home addresses, of numerous Minnesota public officials' including Hortman. It included a note that Hortman was married to her 'husband Mark,' that she had two children, and that she was in her 11th term in the Legislature. Boelter used several websites to search for addresses and personal information of legislators and purchased materials from Fleet Farm to carry out the shootings, including flashlights and decals to create fake license plates that read 'POLICE.' He also wore a silicone mask throughout the night. When he arrived at the Hoffmans' house, Boelter knocked and repeatedly shouted, 'This is the police. Open the door,' according to the complaint. When the Hoffmans opened the door, Boelter shined his flashlight in their faces, and allegedly told them there had been a shooting inside the house. He asked them if there were any guns present, according the complaint, and Hoffman said their guns were locked away. Yvette eventually realized that Boelter was wearing a mask, and the couple told Boelter they knew he was not an officer. Boelter responded by saying something along the lines of: 'This is a robbery,' the complaint says. Sen. Hoffman tried to push Boelter away from the front door and Boelter then 'shot Senator Hoffman repeatedly.' Yvette Hoffman tried to shut Boelter outside by closing the door, but he then shot her multiple times, the complaint says. Boelter then went to the home of another state legislator in Maple Grove who was out of town with family. As Boelter pounded on the door, a doorbell camera caught him saying, 'This is the police. Open this door. This is the police. We have a warrant.' He then traveled to New Hope toward Rest's home. By that point, law enforcement in the Twin Cities had been alerted that there could be threats on state politicians and police were engaging in proactive investigations. A New Hope officer dispatched to a home came upon a SUV that resembled a squad car. The complaint reads that the officer approached the SUV and saw a 'bald, white male, staring straight ahead. The officer tried to speak with that man, but he continued staring straight ahead and did not respond.' Thompson said he believes Boelter was wearing the silicone mask when the New Hope officer pulled up next to him. The officer then left to continue the wellness check. When the officer returned to the area where the SUV had been parked, it was gone. 'I am so grateful for the heroic work of the New Hope Police Department and its officers. Their quick action saved my life,' Rest said Monday. 'While I am thankful the suspect has been apprehended, I grieve for the loss of Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and I am praying for the recovery of John and Yvette Hoffman.' Not long after that, the complaint reads, Brooklyn Park police encountered Boelter outside the Hortmans' home. He had a flashlight raised toward the house and as police arrived he fired several shots into the home before entering and killing Melissa and Mark Hortman and shooting and gravely injuring the family dog, Gilbert. Law enforcement officials said they are still investigating whether Boelter actively shot at police. 'This happened incredibly fast,' said Drew Evans, superintendent of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. 'What I can tell you is the police officers that were there on the scene, that while they were assessing the situation that gunfire erupted.' Bought e-bike, car After the slayings, video footage shows Boelter returning to a north Minneapolis house. A witness said he met Boelter at a bus stop at 7 a.m. Saturday at the intersection of 48th Avenue N. and Lyndale Avenue, less than a mile to the east of Boelter's Fremont Avenue apartment. He was holding two duffel bags, and asked to buy the witness' e-bike. The man agreed, and the two boarded a bus and traveled to the witness' house, where Boelter also asked to buy the man's Buick sedan, which was later abandoned miles away from Boelter's house in Green Isle. Boelter and the man went to a U.S. Bank branch in Robbinsdale, where Boelter withdrew $2,200, emptying the account, the complaint says. He gave the man 'about $900' for the e-bike and Buick. About 2:30 a.m. Sunday, police received word about someone riding an e-bike some 2 miles northeast of his family home in Green Isle but were unable to locate him. The abandoned Buick was found near where the e-bike was sighted. Inside it, police found a handwritten letter directed to the FBI. The letter was signed 'Dr. Vance Luther Boelter,' and included him admitting to being 'the shooter at large in Minnesota,' according to the charges. After being arrested late Sunday in a field in Sibley County, Boelter was booked into the Hennepin County jail just after 1 a.m. Monday. His bail was set at $5 million, but he is now in federal custody. Two criminal hearings Boelter appeared in person in U.S. District Court in St. Paul on Monday afternoon wearing a standard orange jumpsuit. A federal defender was appointed for him after U.S. Magistrate Judge John Docherty said he doubts Boelter's finances could cover attorney costs given the 'severity' of his charges. Docherty asked how he pronounced his name and Boelter said it is pronounced 'Belter.' 'The 'o' is silent,' Boelter said. As Assistant U.S. Attorney Bradley Endicott read the criminal charges, Boelter looked on, responding 'yes, sir' to most questions, leaning forward to speak into a microphone and projecting his voice throughout the courtroom. He told Docherty that he understands the charges against him and has read the criminal complaint. He said he owns his home and works part time, making 'maybe $540 per week,' and has an estimated $20,000 to $30,000 in his bank account. His next hearing was set for June 27. Boelter was initially charged by the Hennepin County Attorney's Office with two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of attempted second-degree murder. Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Judith Cole handled the bail review for the state charges and Judge Juan Hoyos granted a bench warrant with $5 million bail. No court date has been set for his next state appearance. Moriarty noted earlier in the day that a conviction on a first-degree murder charge in Minnesota carries a sentence of life in prison without parole. 'It is a frightening time we are living in,' Moriarty said. 'We will seek justice and accountability for the victims of all these heinous crimes. We cannot continue this way.' ___ © 2025 The Minnesota Star Tribune. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Chicago Tribune

13 hours ago

• Chicago Tribune

In 1894 Pullman strike, Illinois' governor fought president's decision to bring in National Guard

The governor fired off a message to the White House, outraged that the president had deployed soldiers to an American city. 'I protest against this, and ask the immediate withdrawal of the Federal troops from active duty in this State,' he wrote. It was July 1894. The governor was John Peter Altgeld of Illinois, and the president was Grover Cleveland. The two Democrats were arguing about Cleveland's decision to send the U.S. Army into Chicago during the Pullman strike. Illinois was 'able to take care of itself,' Altgeld wrote, telling Cleveland that the deployment 'insults the people of this State by imputing to them an inability to govern themselves, or an unwillingness to enforce the law.' Their dispute has echoes today, with President Donald Trump ordering the California National Guard and U.S. Marines sent to help deal with protests in Los Angeles. This time, California Gov. Gavin Newsom has led a chorus of objections to the president's move. In 1894, the progressive Altgeld was the loudest voice of protest. Altgeld, who'd emigrated from Germany as a toddler, was a Cook County judge before winning election as governor in 1892. The following year, he faced harsh criticism when he pardoned three alleged anarchists for their supposed roles in the 1886 Haymarket bombing, which killed seven police officers and several civilians during a labor demonstration west of the Loop. Altgeld said the imprisoned men were innocent, but the Tribune and other newspapers labeled him as an anarchist and apologist for murder. At the time, Chicago was reveling in the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893, but the city soon fell into an economic depression. That prompted tycoon George Pullman to slash salaries at his railcar factory, even as he continued charging workers the same rent for living in his company's Far South Side complex. Pullman's desperate employees went on strike in May 1894. The conflict expanded in late June, when the American Railway Union refused to work on trains containing Pullman's luxury sleeping cars — a boycott that paralyzed railroads across the country. Two federal judges in Chicago, William Allen Woods and Peter S. Grosscup, issued an injunction July 2, ordering the union to stop disrupting interstate commerce and postal shipments. U.S. Marshal John W. Arnold delivered the message to a crowd of 2,000 strikers in Blue Island. Arriving on a train, he stood in the mail car's doorway and read the injunction. 'I command you in the name of the president of the United States to disperse and go to your homes,' he said. According to the Tribune, Arnold was greeted with 'howls, hooting, curses, and scornful laughter.' People shouted, 'To hell with the government! To hell with the courts!' And then they 'wantonly violated the court's order' by pushing over a boxcar onto the tracks. Arnold telegraphed U.S. Attorney General Richard Olney. 'I am unable to disperse the mob, clear the tracks, or arrest the men … and believe that no force less than the regular troops of the United States can procure the passage of the mail trains, or enforce the orders of the courts,' he wrote. Cleveland ordered soldiers from Fort Sheridan, a base in Lake County, into Chicago. He later cited a statute authorizing the president to deploy armed forces if 'unlawful obstructions, combinations or assemblages of persons, or rebellion against the authority of the United States' made it 'impracticable' to enforce laws through 'the ordinary course of judicial proceedings.' A crowd cheered when troops arrived in Chicago early on the morning of the Fourth of July. The Tribune reported that the soldiers were there to teach union 'dictator' Eugene Debs and his followers a lesson — 'that the law of the land was made to be obeyed and not violated by a rabble of anarchistic rioters.' But Altgeld said troops weren't needed. 'Very little actual violence has been committed,' he told Cleveland. 'At present some of our railroads are paralyzed, not by reason of obstructions, but because they cannot get men to operate their trains.' Cleveland replied that he was acting 'in strict accordance with the Constitution and laws of the United States.' Altgeld sent a second telegram, challenging the president's use of the military to enforce laws. Not even 'the autocrat of Russia' has that much power, Altgeld said. Recalling his reaction to Altgeld's missives, Cleveland later said, 'I confess that my patience was somewhat strained.' A Tribune editorial scoffed at Altgeld's arguments: 'This lying, hypocritical, demagogical, sniveling Governor of Illinois does not want the law enforced. He is a sympathizer with riot, with violence, with lawlessness, and with anarchy.' An Army officer told the White House that Chicago's 'people seem to feel easier since arrival of troops.' But Altgeld told Cleveland that the soldiers' presence was an 'irritant' that 'aroused the indignation' of many. Police Superintendent Michael Brennan reported: 'The workingmen had heard of the arrival of the federal troops and were incensed.' Mobs soon knocked over or burned hundreds of freight cars, drunkenly shouting insults at soldiers. 'MOBS DEFY ALL LAW — Make Night Hideous with a Reign of Torch and Riot,' a Tribune headline declared. In the midst of the turmoil, buildings from the 1893 World's Fair went up in flames, attracting a huge crowd of spectators. Arson was suspected. Most of the rioters weren't striking railway workers, according to Brennan. Rather, they were 'hoodlums, the vicious element and half-grown boys' who 'were ready for mischief of any kind,' he wrote. More federal troops arrived. And despite Altgeld's opposition to the federal deployment, he sent 4,000 members of the Illinois National Guard to help the Chicago police establish order. Brennan praised the way his own police handled the situation, writing: 'They used their clubs freely, vigorously and effectively; there were many cracked heads and sore sports where the policeman's club fell, but no human life was taken.' According to Brennan, the most troublesome law enforcement officers were 5,000 men deputized by the U.S. marshal. 'A large number of them were toughs, thieves and ex-convicts,' he wrote. 'They were dangerous to the lives of the citizens on account of their careless use of pistols. They fired into the crowd of bystanders when there was no disturbance and no reason for shooting. Innocent men and women were killed by these shots.' U.S. Army officials were reluctant to allow their 1,900 soldiers in Chicago to fire at rioters — or to take on the role of police officers. 'Punishment belongs not to the troops, but to the courts of justice,' they wrote in an order outlining rules of engagement. Reporting for Harper's Weekly, artist Frederic Remington described soldiers angry at being held back from attacking 'the malodorous crowd of anarchist foreign trash.' Remington called Chicago 'a seething mass of smells, stale beer, and bad language.' But he noted that the city's 'decent people' welcomed the soldiers. The strike's deadliest episode happened July 7 at 49th and Loomis streets, where several thousand people jeered and threw rocks at the Illinois National Guard. The state troops charged with bayonets and fired several volleys, killing at least four and wounding 20. A Tribune headline called it 'A DAY OF BLOOD.' The Army focused on getting the trains to run again, with soldiers riding shotgun in trains as they carried mail and much needed shipments of food. On July 8, U.S. soldiers escorting a train fired at crowds in Hammond, killing an innocent bystander. 'I would like to know by what authority United States troops come in here and shoot our citizens without the slightest warning,' Hammond Mayor Patrick Reilley said. By the time the strike was over in mid-July — with the union defeated and the soldiers gone — the official local death toll was 12, though some historians say more than 30 died. Altgeld lost his bid for reelection in 1896. He died in 1902 and was buried in Graceland Cemetery, where the monument on his grave features some of his words, including a portion of his message to Grover Cleveland: 'This is a government of law, and not a government by the caprice of an individual.'

New York Times

14 hours ago

• New York Times

Oil Companies Fight Climate Lawsuits by Citing Free Speech

Oil companies are employing an unusual tactic in some of their biggest court battles. They're alleging that their critics are infringing on their free-speech rights, invoking laws designed to protect people who challenge the powerful. The laws, known as 'anti-SLAPP' provisions, were created to stop companies or people from silencing their critics with the threat of costly lawsuits. Oil companies have turned this around, arguing that climate lawsuits against them should be thrown out because they infringe on the companies' protections under the First Amendment. 'What we're seeing now is a complete inversion' of the original intent of these laws, said Nicole Ligon, an assistant professor of law at Campbell University in North Carolina and expert on freedom of speech and SLAPP, which is shorthand for strategic lawsuit against public participation. The laws offer judges a way to dismiss cases that they determine lack merit. This strategy is playing out in courtrooms nationwide, particularly where oil companies are fighting lawsuits filed by state and local governments that claim the industry has misled Americans about global warming and should help pay the cost of adapting to climate change. The industry considers these climate lawsuits a major threat. Nearly 40 have been filed since 2017. They are seeking potentially billions of dollars in damages. Recently, the cases have come under increased scrutiny as the Trump administration has sought to stop them, even pre-emptively suing Hawaii and Michigan to try to block them from filing their own climate-change lawsuits. (Hawaii sued anyway, and Michigan has said it will.) Want all of The Times? Subscribe.