Suspect in Paul Pelosi Attack Indicted on Federal Charge – A federal grand jury indicted on Wednesday a man already in custody in connection with the assault on the husband of U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi last month on charges of assault and attempted kidnapping. The charges against David DePape arising from the invasion of the Pelosis’ San Francisco residence on October 28 are identical to but override those in an earlier federal complaint filed on October 31.
According to the charge, when officers responded to Paul Pelosi’s 911 call, they found Paul Pelosi and DePape fighting over a hammer. According to the complaint, when an officer told DePape to drop the hammer, he responded, “ummm nope” before swinging it forcefully at Paul Pelosi. The exchange lasted around 15 seconds and left Pelosi and DePape laying on the floor with Paul Pelosi’s head swollen with blood, according to the allegation.
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DePape, a 42-year-old resident of Richmond, a suburb of San Francisco, was arrested inside the Pelosi residence. When Paul Pelosi contacted 911, he informed officers that a man he had never seen before entered his bedroom in search of Nancy Pelosi while he was sleeping. Later, officers discovered that the glass door to the back porch had been broken. A roll of tape, white rope, a second hammer, a pair of rubber and cloth gloves, and zip ties were recovered.
The assault shook the political scene days before the fiercely contested midterm elections, the first countrywide election since the Capitol uprising on January 6, 2021. The number of threats made against lawmakers and election officials has reached an all-time high, and authorities have issued a warning about the rise of extremism in the United States.
Adam Lipson, DePape’s public defender, did not immediately answer phone and email messages. Last Friday, he pleaded not guilty to accusations filed by the state against DePape, a fringe activist interested in conspiracy theories. On the state counts of attempted murder, burglary, and elder abuse, a San Francisco court ordered DePape to be kept without bail, and he has also been placed on federal detention in the case.
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He was indicted on federal counts including assaulting a member of a U.S. official’s immediate family in retaliation for the official’s official activities. The second count says that he sought to kidnap a U.S. official who was performing official duties. The first charge has a maximum prison sentence of 30 years, while the second carries a maximum sentence of 20 years.
