Steve Gorman
(Reuters) – The man who broke into former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s home and beat her husband with a hammer should be sentenced for federal crimes amounting to terrorism, prosecutors urged on Friday. 40 years in prison.
In a sentencing memorandum filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, prosecutors said David Wayne DePape has shown no remorse and deserves no leniency and should be held accountable for two counts he was convicted of last year. The charges each carry statutory maximum penalties.
“At a time when extremism leads to attacks on public officials and elected officials, this case provides a moment to speak with others who harbor ideologically motivated dreams and plans for violence,” the memo said.
The sentencing date is May 17.
In November, a federal court jury found DePape guilty of attempting to kidnap then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and assaulting her husband, Paul Pelosi, both charges stemming from her official duties as a member of Congress.
Prosecutors recommended the maximum sentence for DePape on each count – 20 years for attempted kidnapping and 30 years for assault – with 20 years to run consecutively on the second count, for a total of 40 years in prison.
Prosecutors argued that while DePape was not convicted of terrorism charges, the crimes he committed a week before the 2022 congressional midterm elections met the federal definition of terrorism as “intended to influence or influence through intimidation or coercion.” “Influencing government actions” criminal conduct.
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Prosecutors viewed the situation as an “aggravation” in sentencing.
In the early morning of October 28, 2022, DePap forced his way into Pelosi’s San Francisco home, confronted her husband, and hit him on the head with a hammer. The police who subsequently arrived at the scene successfully subdued the intruder.
The House speaker, who is constitutionally second in line to the presidency, was away in Washington at the time. Paul Pelosi, 82, was hospitalized for several days with a skull fracture and injuries to his hands and right arm.
Evidence at the trial showed that DePape, a Canadian citizen who had been living illegally in the United States for 14 years at the time of the attack, was driven by far-right conspiracy theories and believed in lies spread by the extremist QAnon movement.
The sentencing memorandum cited DePape’s own trial testimony, in which he admitted that his purpose was to kidnap Nancy Pelosi, interrogate her, and break her knees if she was found to be lying.
The jury also heard a recording of DePape giving a television interview in 2023, saying he was “sorry that I didn’t get more interviews… I should have been better prepared.”
In addition to asserting DePape’s lack of remorse, prosecutors said the harshest sentence was necessary due to the seriousness of the crime and to deter others from similar behavior.
DePape still faces separate state charges for Pelosi’s break-in and attack, including attempted murder, which could carry a sentence of 13 years to life in prison. He pleads not guilty.
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