Rep. Hortman's son helps pass MN bill on police cleanup damage coverage

Moment of silence for Hortmans at State of the State

Gov. Tim Walz started his State of the State address with a moment of silence for Melissa and Mark Hortman, who were fatally shot in June 2025.

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Melissa Hortman may not be back in the legislature this year, but her son helped get a couple bills passed in the aftermath of her assassination last June.

Police clean-up damage coverage

The backstory:

Colin Hortman sat in the Senate gallery with his wife Tuesday and got a hug from Senator John Hoffman, who was also shot during a gunman’s rampage targeting Democrats.

Colin had a hard time getting insurance to pay for the cleanup after his parents were shot in their home, and police sprayed chemical irritants trying to flush out the shooter, who escaped.

The Senate passed a bill Tuesday that forces insurance to cover similar damage caused by police executing a search warrant or trying to catch a suspect.

"To make sure that if anyone experiences this again, the process will be expeditious, that the family will be spared having to go through this horrible, lengthy, inhumane process so that they can have their home back," Sen. Bonnie Westlin, DFL-Plymouth, said.

They also passed a bill directing police to identify what chemical irritants they use in those operations.

What's next:

The bills already passed in the House, so they go to the governor’s desk for his signature now.