Charges filed in stabbing death of Minnesota gubernatorial candidate's daughter

Jenny Berg, The Minnesota Star Tribune on Feb 10, 2026

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ST. CLOUD, Minn. — The husband of 22-year-old Hallie Tobler was charged Tuesday with stabbing her to death in their St. Cloud residence.

Tobler is the daughter of Republican gubernatorial candidate Jeff Johnson, who suspended his campaign Monday in the wake of Tobler’s death.

Dylan M. Tobler, 23, was charged with one felony count of second-degree murder in Stearns County district court.

According to the criminal complaint, a witness went to the couple’s residence in the 3100 block of 40th Avenue South on Saturday after not hearing from Hallie Tobler since last Tuesday.

The witness told police they knocked on the door for about 15 minutes before it was unlocked from the inside; they found Hallie Tobler dead in the bathroom with multiple stab wounds to her chest, upper back, head and neck. They told police Dylan Tobler was in the living room “and appeared to have tried to kill himself,” the complaint states.

Police found multiple knives in the bathroom. When asked what had happened over the past several days, Dylan Tobler told police, “It’s a mess” and that “he thought it was his fault (his wife) was dead and he caused his own injuries,” the complaint states.

The Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office determined she died of multiple stab wounds. Dylan Tobler was taken to St. Cloud Hospital and then booked into Stearns County jail on Tuesday.

At his first court appearance, Stearns County Judge Shan Wang ordered Tobler’s bail set at $3 million with no conditions or $1.5 million with conditions including that he not use alcohol or drugs, not possess dangerous weapons and take medications as prescribed. His next court date is Feb. 23.

According to state court records, Tobler was previously charged with a misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct from a June 19 incident in which he choked his wife.

At the time, Hallie Tobler told police her husband “has psychosis (and) a history of aggressive behavior” and that he had made vague suicide threats before leaving their home. She said she believed her husband was having delusions and she was alarmed by his behavior, documents state.

Court records show Dylan Tobler pleaded guilty to a petty misdemeanor and agreed to pay a $150 fine. He was sentenced Jan. 27.

The Minnesota Republican Party released a statement Monday on X that said Johnson had suspended his campaign for governor.

“There are no words that can adequately express the sorrow we feel for Jeff and his family,” the statement said. “The loss of a child is unimaginable, and our thoughts and prayers are with them as they grieve this devastating tragedy.”

Last May, Johnson announced his candidacy for governor, noting his goals were to eliminate taxpayer fraud and support federal agents who are removing undocumented immigrants from the state. He served as a member of the St. Cloud City Council for two terms, and drew controversy in 2017 when he proposed a resolution calling for a ban on refugee resettlement. Instead, the council approved a resolution “in support of a just and welcoming community.”

In last week’s GOP straw poll, House Speaker Lisa Demuth of Cold Spring earned the most votes, with businessmen Kendall Qualls and Mike Lindell earning the next highest vote counts. Johnson had less than 1% of the vote. Johnson is not the former Hennepin County commissioner and gubernatorial candidate of the same name who ran in 2014 and 2018.

Demuth issued a statement saying the Johnson family is “walking through an unspeakable tragedy right now, and my prayers are with them every step of the way.”

Former St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis, who was in office when Johnson was on the City Council, said Tuesday he’s shocked by the tragedy.

“For a parent to lose their daughter, especially in such a horrific and tragic way, it’s just unbelievable heartbreaking,” Kleis said. “I met his family and daughter years ago when she was much younger, and I know how much love he and (his wife) Julie had for their daughter. I could tell every time I talked to him.”

For the past two years, Hallie Tobler had worked part time for the city of St. Cloud in its IT department, according to City Administrator Tracy Hodel.

St. Cloud City Council President Mike Conway, who ran for Johnson’s Ward 4 seat after Johnson decided not to run for reelection in 2018, knows Johnson through ties to the local Republican Party.

“There’s no words that anybody can say to express condolences to a family when they lose a young person, especially in a tragic manner,” Conway said. “I don’t expect Jeff and the family to be very public in the next couple of months. They’re going to have to relive everything all the way through” the legal process.

From 1990 through 2024, an average of 18 women died in Minnesota each year from intimate partner violence, according to the nonprofit Violence Free Minnesota.

Its recent report shows that in 2024, at least 12 women and one man died from intimate partner violence, as well as 11 bystanders or intervenors. Of the 13 who were killed by a partner, eight died by gunshot, three were stabbed and two were strangled.

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