Thousands of people are expected to pay their respects to former Minnesota House Speaker and Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, who were assassinated in their home in what authorities are calling was a politically motivated killing.
The two - and their dog - will lie in state at the State Capitol Rotunda this Friday.
The event is historic for various reasons, not just because it's relatively rare in Minnesota.
Hortman will be the first woman to lie in state, and along with her husband will be the first couple to do so. The Hortman's golden retriever, Gilbert, who was seriously wounded in the attack and had to be euthanized, will lie in state with them making Gilbert the first pet to receive the honor.
"This is kind of a groundbreaking event and one with a lot of grief attached to it," says Brian Pease who is the historic site manager at the State Capitol.
He says Hortman will be one of fewer than 20 Minnesotans accorded the honor, with this one more signifigant due to the nature of the death.
"(Gov.) Floyd B. Olson died of stomach cancer, but people knew he was sick," Pease explains. "And I think this is such a tragic story that it's captured the the grief of the whole state."
The first ever to lie in state at the Minnesota State Capitol was Civil War veteran, Col. William Colville, in 1905.
"He was pretty much Minnesota's elite war hero because he led the charge of the first Minnesota at Gettysburg," says Pease.
The current state capitol building was built between 1896 and 1905, which is why Colville was there.
"He ended up coming for a transfer of the battle flags to the new capitol event and passed away in his sleep the night before that event. So they put his body in state in the rotunda of the Capitol. So he started that tradition."
Other notable people to lie in state in Minnesota include Nobel Peace Prize winner, Sec. of State and former U.S. Sen. Frank Kellogg in 1937 and former Minneapolis Mayor, U.S. Sen. and U.S. Vice President Hubert Humphrey in 1978. Former Gov. Al Quie was the last in 2023.
The public can pay their respects at the Capitol from noon to 5:00 p.m. Friday.
A private funeral is set for 10:30 a.m. Saturday. A livestream will be available on the Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s YouTube channel.
Full list of people to lie in state:
Civil War Col. William Colvill, 1905
Gov. John Johnson, 1909
State Treasurer Clarence Dinehart, 1910
Supreme Court Justice Edwin Jaggard, 1911
Gov. Winfield Hammond, 1916
Lt. Gov Lyndon Smith, 1918
State Sen. Pierre Hilbert, 1921
U.S. Sen. and former Gov. Knute Nelson, 1923
U.S. Sen. Thomas Schall, 1935
Gov. Floyd Olson, 1936
U.S. Secretary of State, former U.S. Sen. Frank Kellogg, 1937
State Sen. Fay Child, 1965
State Auditor Stafford King, 1970
Vice President and former U.S. Sen. Hubert Humphrey, 1978
State Sen. B. Robert Lewis, 1979
State Sen. Nicholas Coleman, 1981
Gov. Harold Stassen, 2001
Gov. Elmer Andersen, 2004
Gov. Al Quie, 2023