More than a year after 82-year-old Paul Pelosi was brutally attacked with a hammer in his San Francisco home, suspect David DePape faces a jury tasked with determining his fate.
DePape, 43, arrived in court in San Francisco on Thursday morning for the first day of his federal trial, where prosecutors want to prove that he was not only responsible for the attack on Paul, but also that he arrived at the Pelosi’s home with the intention of kidnapping the then-Speaker of the House of Representatives. home of Nancy Pelosi.
If convicted of assault and attempted kidnapping, DePape faces up to life in prison.
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Police investigate the scene at the Pelosis home in San Francisco on October 28, 2022, hours after Paul was attacked by an intruder. Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty
The attack occurred on October 28, 2022, after DePape allegedly broke into the Pelosis’ home and woke Paul up, demanding to speak to Nancy.
At a news conference after the attack, San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott said officers arrived at the Pelosis home shortly before 2:30 a.m. local time to conduct a medical check. Inside the home, they allegedly found Paul and DePape holding a hammer. Then, Scott said, “the suspect pulled the hammer from Mr. Pelosi and violently assaulted him with it.”
“Our officers immediately tackled the suspect, disarmed him, took him into custody, called for EMS and provided medical attention,” Scott added.
Body camera footage offered further details of the incident, showing police telling the suspect to drop the hammer. “No,” he replied. Within seconds, the man raised his hand and attacked Paul in front of the officers, who rushed in and tackled the assailant to the ground.
Body camera footage of the attack on Paul Pelosi has been released, showing the moment the assailant lunged at him with a hammer
The audio of the call Paul made to emergency services before the attack was also released. In it, the dispatcher asks Paul if he needs help.
“There’s a man here just waiting for my wife to come back,” Paul replied, adding “Nancy Pelosi.”
“He’s just waiting for her to come back, but she won’t be here for days, so I guess I’ll have to wait,” Paul continued. According to the US Capitol Police, which assisted in the investigation, Nancy was in Washington, DC with her bodyguard at the time of the attack.
Paul suffered a fractured skull and other serious injuries as a result of the attack and successfully underwent surgery to repair his skull on the same day as the incident.
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In addition to the two federal charges, DePape faces a slew of charges from the San Francisco District Attorney, including attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, burglary and other crimes.
DePape’s state trial date will be set for Nov. 29.
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Source: HIS Education