Story perspectives

Daycare killings: Suspect kills wife, daughter, then himself

8/13/2026

Summary

Chiefs Investigate Tragedy

Hopkins Police Chief Brent Johnson said a 41-year-old man killed his wife and 7-year-old daughter at Brown Bear Daycare in Hopkins, then died by self-inflicted gunshot.
Burnsville Police Chief Matt Smith said a 78-year-old woman, a relative of the suspect, was found stabbed near Maple Island Road and Joplin Avenue, linking the incidents.
Six other children in the Hopkins daycare were unharmed and have been reunited with their families.

Summary

Minnesota Tightens

Minnesota requires background checks for all adult licensed in-home daycare staff, with felony domestic-assault convictions causing permanent disqualification while unarrested abuse remains uncaptured.
The Violence Policy Center recorded over 1,000 murder-suicides in 2025—65 % involved intimate partners, 80 % occurred at home, 92 % were male perpetrators, about nine each week.
In the first half of 2025, 45 children and teens under 18 were homicide victims in such incidents.

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Chiefs Investigate Tragedy

Hopkins Police Chief Brent Johnson said a 41-year-old man killed his wife and 7-year-old daughter at Brown Bear Daycare in Hopkins, then died by self-inflicted gunshot.
Burnsville Police Chief Matt Smith said a 78-year-old woman, a relative of the suspect, was found stabbed near Maple Island Road and Joplin Avenue, linking the incidents.
Six other children in the Hopkins daycare were unharmed and have been reunited with their families.

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