State trial underway for man sentenced to 30 years in prison for attack on Nancy Pelosi's husband

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The man sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for bludgeoning Nancy Pelosi's husband with a hammer inside their San Francisco home returned to a courtroom Wednesday to face state charges including attempted murder.

A federal jury found David DePape, 44, guilty of trying to take Pelosi hostage and assaulting her husband, Paul Pelosi, after he broke into their home on October 28, 2022, at the search for Nancy Pelosi, who was then Speaker of the House. A federal judge sentenced him to 30 years in prison.

In the state's case, the San Francisco District Attorney charged DePape with attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, burglary of a residence, false imprisonment, menacing death or serious injury against a public official and threats against the staff or family of a public official. DePape has pleaded not guilty.

Opening statements are expected to begin Wednesday, a day after DePape's federal sentence is reopened to allow him to speak.

District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley on May 17 sentenced DePape to 20 years in prison for the attempted kidnapping of Nancy Pelosi and 30 years in prison for the assault of Paul Pelosi, the maximum for both counts. The sentences would run simultaneously. Corley did not allow DePape to address the court before she was sentenced and corrected her mistake by reopening that portion of the trial Tuesday.

DePape's defense attorneys had asked the judge to sentence him to 14 years in prison, noting that he was going through a difficult time in his life at the time of the attack, that he suffered from undiagnosed mental health problems and that he had no criminal history.

On Tuesday, Corley apologized to DePape, 44, and to attorneys for his mistake and asked if he wanted to address the court.

DePape, wearing an orange shirt and orange pants with his hair in a short ponytail, said yes and began speaking quickly from a piece of paper.

“I'm sorry for what I did,” he said, adding that he felt horrible and that he never intended to hurt Pelosi and should have left home when he realized the old speaker was not there.

DePape admitted during his testimony at the federal trial that he planned to hold Nancy Pelosi hostage, interrogate her and “break her kneecaps” if she did not admit the lies he told about the ” Russiagate,” a reference to the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential campaign.

The attack on Paul Pelosi, who was 82 at the time, was captured on police body camera just days before the 2022 midterm elections and sent shockwaves through the political world . He suffered two head injuries, including a fractured skull that was repaired with plates and screws that he will keep for the rest of his life. His right arm and hand were also injured.

DePape said he plans to wear an inflatable unicorn costume and record his questioning of Nancy Pelosi to post online. Prosecutors say he had ropes and restraints with him. Detectives also found body cameras, a computer and a tablet.

DePape also testified under cross-examination that he told a San Francisco police detective that he had hoped to see an injured Pelosi rolling onto the House floor so that everyone would know there were injuries. consequences for being “the baddest person on the planet”.

Angela Chuang, one of his lawyers, said during closing arguments that DePape was estranged from his family and drawn into conspiracy theories.

Chuang said at his sentencing that DePape was first exposed to extreme beliefs by Gypsy Taub, his ex-girlfriend and mother of his children. Taub and their two children attended every hearing in the federal case.

Taub, a well-known pro-nudity activist in the San Francisco Bay Area, met DePape in Hawaii when he was 20 and she was in her 30s and pregnant, DePape's twin sister, Joanne Robinson, said in a letter to the judge. seeking clemency.

Robinson wrote that Taub isolated DePape from his family and inflicted “extreme psychological harm” on his brother.

The Associated Press