On December 13, 2013, David DePapp appeared in Berkeley, California.
Michael Short/AP
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Michael Short/AP
On December 13, 2013, David DePapp appeared in Berkeley, California.
Michael Short/AP
SAN FRANCISCO — Federal prosecutors are asking a judge to sentence a man to 40 years in prison for breaking into the San Francisco home of U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, attempting to hold her hostage and attacking her with a hammer. husband.
Prosecutors made the request before David DePape’s sentencing hearing, saying he showed no remorse for the October 2022 attack, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
“There is nothing about the defendant’s history or characteristics that warrants leniency,” federal prosecutors wrote in court documents. “The defendant admitted — in fact, bragged — that he knew what he was doing.”
DePape was convicted last year of attempting to kidnap a federal official and assaulting an immediate family member of a federal official. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Friday.
The attack on then-82-year-old Paul Pelosi, captured on police body cameras just days before the midterm elections, sent shockwaves through the political world.
DePape admitted during his trial testimony that he broke into Pelosis’ home with the intention of taking the speaker hostage and “breaking her kneecaps” if she lied to him. He also admitted that he beat Paul Pelosi with a hammer after police showed up at her home and said his plan to end what he saw as government corruption was unraveling.
Defense attorneys said DePape was motivated by his political beliefs and fell into conspiracy theories.
Nancy Pelosi was not home when the attack occurred. Paul Pelosi suffered two wounds to his head, including a skull fracture, which he repaired with plates and screws that will live with him for the rest of his life. He also suffered injuries to his right arm and hand.
