A North Dakota woman is sentenced to life in prison without parole for 2022 killing of ex-boyfriend

MINOT, N.D. (AP) — A judge sentenced a North Dakota woman to life in prison without parole after a jury convicted her last year of murder in connection with the death of her ex-boyfriend, who was the father of her child.

State District Judge Gary Lee sentenced Heather Hoffman, 27, of Minot Air Force Base, on Friday. In September, a Ward County jury convicted her of murder in the April 2022 shooting death of Alex Eckert, 22.

In making his sentencing decision, the judge called the killing “an intentional, premeditated, planned attack on Alex Eckert and that attack ultimately took his life.”

Prosecutors had said Hoffman and Eckert were in the midst of a child custody dispute, according to KMOT-TV. Hoffman shot Eckert in the entryway of his apartment in Minot during a confrontation related to child custody.

Hoffman said she was innocent and that others were responsible for Eckert’s death. Her lawyer said she plans to appeal her conviction.