Minnesota makes police impersonation a felony Aug. 1
Minnesota will make impersonating a police officer a felony effective Aug. 1, upgrading the crime from a misdemeanor and raising the legal stakes for people who pretend to be law enforcement.[1]
The law sets a maximum sentence of two years, and up to five years if the impersonation occurs while committing another crime.[1] Sen. John Hoffman authored the bill.[1]
In 2025, Vance Boelter attacked Rep. Melissa Hortman and Sen. John Hoffman while posing as a police officer, an incident Hoffman cited as the direct reason he sponsored the measure.[1]
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📌 Key Facts
- Effective Aug. 1, 2026, impersonating a police officer in Minnesota becomes a felony instead of a misdemeanor.
- The new law sets a maximum of two years in prison for impersonation, and up to five years if the impersonation occurs while committing another crime.
- The bill was authored by Sen. John Hoffman and was explicitly inspired by Vance Boelter’s 2025 attacks on Rep. Melissa Hortman and Hoffman, where the assailant posed as an officer.
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July 23, 2026