Man Who Attacked Nancy Pelosi’s Husband Sentenced To 30 Years

Ted Johnson
·4 min read
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The man convicted of attacking Nancy Pelosi’s husband, Paul Pelosi, was sentenced to 20 years in prison today, per the AP.

David DePape was found guilty last year on federal charges of kidnapping and assault.

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U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley issued separate 20-year and 30-year sentences for each count, with the sentences running concurrently. During a break in at their San Francisco residence in October, 2022, DePape attacked Paul Pelosi with a hammer. Nancy Pelosi, who was then House speaker, was in Washington, D.C. at the time. Prosecutors said that he planned to capture the House speaker, and he told police that if she lied when confronting her, he would have broken her kneecaps. Paul Pelosi called 911 when he broke into their residence, and when police arrived, they witnesses DePape striking him with a hammer.

DePape also faces a series of state charges, including assault with a deadly weapon and residential burglary. A trial is schedule to start this month.

Prosecutors had sought 40 years; DePape’s attorneys sought 14 years, and wrote that the judge should take into consideration that his life was “distorted by an abusive, long-term relationship with a partner who exploited his innate vulnerabilities and immersed him in a world of extreme beliefs where reality is not reality.” They wrote that in his relationship with Gypsy Taub, she was domineering and controlling and cut him off from his family. They said that his life was “further radicalized through his obsessive consumption of media amplifying extreme beliefs.”

DePape’s attorneys had argued that his sentence should take into account the larger context of the spread of the QAnon conspiracy theory, arguing that it was his “obsessive consumption of right-wing media that amplified similar theories demonizing the people who ended up on his target list.” That “created a perfect storm, all of which provides valuable insight on how he ended up here as well as a potential way forward.”

In his letter to the judge, Paul Pelosi wrote that “ever since the defendant violently broke into my home and woke me up yelling ‘Where’s Nancy?’ at 2:00 am on October 28, 2022, my life has been irrevocably changed.”

“My head injuries continue to affect my life,” he wrote. “My hair grew back — but I have bumps on my head from the hammer blows and a metal plate from skull surgery. The dizziness has not gone away.” He wrote that he continues to suffer from vertigo and fell twice at his home last November, “leading to extensive medical evaluations including MRIs and nerve block injections in my neck.”

“Treatments continued into February 2024. I walk slowly and have difficulty with my balance. Nearly every day I get headaches that become migraines unless quickly addressed. I need to sleep during the day and cannot tolerate bright lights or loud noises for extended periods of time.”

Pelosi wrote that he also continues to be emotionally traumatized from the experience and they continue to receive threats. He also wrote that they are still unable to remove the blood stains in the entranceway of their home. Nancy Pelosi also wrote to the judge that the attack “continues to take its toll on his well-being.”

She also wrote about the attack as “a source of sick humor — especially to people in high places” and that “it adds to the pain, the fear and the threat to those who might consider public office.” Donald Trump has joked about the assault, including at a campaign rally in November.

Aaron Bennett, spokesperson for Pelosi, said in a statement, “The Pelosi family couldn’t be prouder of their Pop and his tremendous courage in saving his own life on the night of the attack and in testifying in this case.  Speaker Pelosi and her family are immensely grateful to all who have sent love and prayers over the last eighteen months, as Mr. Pelosi continues his recovery.

“Given the ongoing state court proceedings, Speaker Pelosi and the Pelosi family will not be offering further comment on this matter at this time.”

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