Hennepin County refuses to release public records related to attack on state lawmakers

Shooting investigation transparency concerns

Hennepin County is refusing to hand over information related to the attack on state lawmakers that the public has a right to see.

The 911 call made from inside the Hoffman home has been described as a critical factor in stopping the attack.

“The heroic actions by the Hoffman family and their daughter, Hope, saved countless lives, and we are grateful,” said Gov. Tim Walz after the arrest of accused assassin Vance Boelter.

RELATED: Hoffman family shares more details about targeted shooting

But when 5 INVESTIGATES asked Hennepin County to see a transcript of the call, the request was quickly denied due to it being an “active investigation.”

“They are public information and they should be released. That’s it. It’s very simple,” said Jane Kirtley, Professor of Media Ethics and Law at the University of Minnesota. “There’s no carve-out for an ongoing investigation.”

Kirtley said releasing transcripts is nothing new.

In fact, 5 INVESTIGATES obtains 911 transcripts all the time, even during active criminal investigations, like the attack on Burnsville first responders, during the wildfires this year in St. Louis County, and even during the active criminal investigation into the shooting of MPD officer Jamal Mitchell.

But for some reason, now during this high-profile case, Hennepin County decided the transcript is confidential while the investigation is active.

“With all due respect, they’re making that up,” Kirtley said. “These are 911 transcripts. They’re public under the law. They should be released.”

It’s not just open government advocates who say these are public.

The state agency that handles public records disputes has weighed in multiple times, and their reading of the law is that these transcripts are public information.

In its correspondence with 5 INVESTIGATES, Hennepin County appeared to brush aside those rulings from the state agency. 

In a statement, a spokesperson said the office “takes seriously its obligation to provide information when legally permissible,” before reiterating the same argument.
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