Helen Ebert, director of communications for the St. Thomas School of Law, said events surrounding the death of alumnus Ted Hoffstrom and a prominent Minnesota doctor are “tragic.”

Hoffstrom was shot and killed by police Nov. 15 after he allegedly shot Dr. Stephen Larson in his Orono home.

“The School of Law is a close-knit community, and many faculty and staff knew Ted Hoffstrom from his time as a student here. The shooting that resulted in his death and the death of Dr. Stephen Larson is tragic and has left all those in the law community who knew Ted completely stunned,” Ebert said. “Faculty and staff remember him as a polite, personable guy who had many friends here.”

Police said Larson was on the phone with a patient when he heard knocking at his front door. Upon answering the door, Larson was shot multiple times with a semi-automatic handgun.

The patient hung up and immediately called 911, and police said they found Hoffstrom in Larson’s front yard with the murder weapon.

A report states that after “diligent attempts to negotiate,” police fired shots and Hoffstrom was pronounced dead at the scene.

According to Ebert, Hoffstrom attended the St. Thomas School of Law from fall 2006 to spring 2009 and graduated with a doctorate of law.

School of Law professor Charles Reid said hearing that one of his former students was associated with a homicide was unexpected.

“I had (Hoffstrom) in class and knew him well enough because he gave presentations and was an active participant in class,” Reid said. “He was a very nice guy—friendly, engaging. Never any anger shown.”

Reid said the incident was a “sad and depressing day in the life of the university.”

“I know here at the law school some of his classmates, the ones I’ve talked to, shared with me that they are astonished this happened and have extreme sympathy for Ted’s family and the victim’s family,” Reid said.

Ebert said the School of Law has reached out to alumni who were in school with Hoffstrom, sharing his funeral arrangements and offering support through the Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers organization.

“The School of Law is a community in every sense of the word, and if our alumni are struggling to understand this tragedy, we want them to connect with the School of Law, their classmates or Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers to help work through their feelings,” Ebert said.

Ebert said she does not anticipate any negative implications for St. Thomas.

“We are keeping Ted’s family and Dr. Stephen Larson’s family in our prayers and ask that the entire St. Thomas community does so as well,” Ebert said.

Zach Zumbusch can be reached at zumb8499@stthomas.edu.