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Paul Pelosi, husband of former U.S. Home Speaker Nancy Pelosi, supplied chilling particulars in federal court docket on Monday of the evening he was allegedly attacked and bludgeoned with a hammer by a person now on trial for tried kidnapping and assault.
Paul Pelosi, 83, took the stand on the second day of the federal trial towards David DePape, who faces federal prices for trying to kidnap the Democratic congresswoman and assaulting her husband with the intent to intervene with the lawmaker’s official duties or retaliate towards her.
DePape, 43, is accused of touring from his Richmond residence to the Pelosis’ San Francisco residence the early morning of Oct. 28, 2022, in the hunt for the lawmaker, allegedly with plans to carry her hostage and query her concerning far-right conspiracy theories involving the Democratic Celebration and an inventory of politicians and public figures.
As a substitute of discovering Nancy Pelosi, who was in Washington on the time, DePape wandered via the quiet Pacific Heights residence earlier than stumbling upon a bed room along with her husband sleeping inside.
“The door opened and a really giant man got here in, with a hammer in a single hand and a few ties within the different hand,” Paul Pelosi testified. “And he mentioned ‘The place’s Nancy?’ And I believe that’s what woke me up.”
Till then, it was a typical night.
Paul Pelosi informed jurors he’d gone to dinner that evening in San Francisco. He went to sleep as traditional between 11:30 p.m. and midnight, bringing a cup of ice water he took to mattress every night. He didn’t set the alarm system, which the household solely used after they had been out of city, as a result of it’s delicate and can go off simply with folks within the residence.
A few hours later, Paul Pelosi awakened in “super shock” after realizing that “somebody had damaged into the home.”
“And him and looking out on the hammer and the ties, I acknowledged that I used to be in severe hazard,” he mentioned. “And so I attempted to remain as calm as potential.”
Paul Pelosi mentioned he informed DePape that his spouse was in Washington.
“Effectively then we’re going to have to attend for her,” Paul Pelosi mentioned DePape responded.
DePape informed Paul Pelosi that his spouse was the “chief of the pack,” and “he needed to take her out,” he testified. As a result of she wasn’t residence, Paul Pelosi mentioned DePape informed him he needed to tie him up and look forward to her.
“He had these cords in his hand. I assume that’s what he was going to make use of,” he mentioned.
Paul Pelosi mentioned he first tried to maneuver towards the elevator exterior the couple’s bed room, which had a phone inside. However DePape caught on, Paul Pelosi mentioned, so as a substitute he moved towards his toilet the place he charged his cellphone every evening.
He known as 911, however didn’t really feel like he may very well be sincere with the dispatcher concerning the scenario. DePape nonetheless had the hammer, and was demanding that Paul Pelosi inform the dispatcher that he was only a good friend of the household.
“And him and looking out on the hammer and the ties, I acknowledged that I used to be in severe hazard,” Paul Pelosi, proven above, informed the jury within the federal trial towards David DePape. “And so I attempted to remain as calm as potential.”
(Noah Berger / Related Press)
Based on his court docket testimony, Paul Pelosi hung up the 911 name, and tried to cause with the intruder. DePape mentioned he was drained, and needed to tie Paul Pelosi up in order that he might get some sleep. Paul Pelosi urged the 2 males stroll downstairs, the place DePape left his two backpacks and different belongings. Paul Pelosi mentioned he knew that if the police got here, they wanted to get downstairs the place it might be simpler to arrest the suspect.
“He mentioned, ‘Oh, the police are going to be right here, it’s over for me, I’m going to need to take you out,’ issues like that,” Paul Pelosi mentioned DePape informed him. “I mentioned ‘No, they’re in all probability not going to come back. They’re in all probability not going to come back.’
“After which the police had been on the door.”
Police physique digicam footage reveals Paul Pelosi — holding his cup of water — opening the door with DePape standing subsequent to him. The 2 had been combating for management of the hammer, which officers ordered them to drop.
DePape as a substitute grabbed it from Paul Pelosi and swung it at his head a number of instances, fracturing his cranium and inflicting accidents to his arm and hand. Picture and video proof proven to the jury on Thursday depict Paul Pelosi mendacity in a pool of his blood, struggling to breathe as police tackled DePape.
He was hospitalized for greater than every week at Zuckerberg San Francisco Common Hospital for a fractured ability and different accidents. He acquired a dozen stitches on the again of his proper arm, he mentioned, and his badly broken left hand was additionally handled. Paul Pelosi informed the jurors that the plastic surgeon was capable of reconstruct his hand and keep away from doing pores and skin grafts, whereas his head harm restoration included regaining his stability and “getting my strolling again.”
Paul Pelosi recounted the assault as his daughter, Christine Pelosi, sat within the far again nook of the courtroom and whereas DePape watched from beside his protection attorneys.
Regardless of the graphic testimony and proof, the trial is taken into account removed from a simple assault case. Prosecutors bear the burden of proving that the assault was as a consequence of Nancy Pelosi’s function as Home Speaker, and that DePape meant to kidnap her after breaking into the lawmaker’s residence.
Assistant U.S. Atty. Laura Vartain Horn informed the federal court docket jury in her opening arguments on Thursday that DePape had gone to the couple’s residence that early morning with the concept to carry Nancy Pelosi “hostage,” “break her kneecaps” and “train her a lesson.”
“When the defendant broke into the speaker’s residence, he had a plan,” Horn informed the jury of 12 males and three girls. “It was a violent plan.”
Prosecutors tried to bolster their argument on Monday when questioning FBI Particular Agent Stephanie Minor, who has dealt with the case during the last 12 months. Minor walked the jurors via a collection of movies exhibiting DePape touring from the East Bay to the Pelosis’ residence, and described an inventory of his web searches within the days main as much as the assault.
Minor defined how DePape had extensively researched the Pelosi household, together with others on his so-called goal record, and paid for a service that offered their emails and residential addresses. The prosecution additionally performed a recording of a telephone name DePape made to a reporter earlier this 12 months, during which he seemingly apologizes for not being profitable in his mission.
“I’ve an essential message for everybody in America. You’re welcome,” he mentioned. “I might additionally prefer to apologize…I’m so sorry I didn’t get extra of them.”
However federal public defenders Jodi Linker and Angela Chuang have disputed the argument that DePape meant to kidnap Nancy Pelosi or assault Paul Pelosi due to his spouse’s official place in Congress.
As a substitute, they declare that the Pelosi residence was the primary cease in a broader scheme to finish corruption and different offenses he believed had been being dedicated by the Democratic Celebration and public officers and celebrities.
DePape’s plan was to make use of Nancy Pelosi to place an finish to his QAnon-like principle that Democratic politicians and public officers had been abusing and trafficking kids, the jury was informed.
“This isn’t a who accomplished it,” Linker informed the jury in her opening argument. It was a “why accomplished it,” she mentioned, “and the why issues.”
The assault has impressed extra conspiracies and prompted political assaults towards the Pelosi household, together with from former President Trump.
“And [Nancy Pelosi’s] towards constructing a wall at our border, despite the fact that she has a wall round her home,” Trump mentioned to cheers and hollering throughout a speech on the California Republican Celebration’s conference in September. “Which clearly didn’t do an excellent job.”
Together with the federal prison case, DePape faces separate state prices together with assault with a lethal weapon, elder abuse, housebreaking and threats to a public official and their household.
Paul Pelosi mentioned he’s largely recovered from his accidents, however that he nonetheless suffers from lightheadedness and complications.
“There are nonetheless lumps on my head. If I run my fingers, I can nonetheless really feel dents and lumps,” he mentioned. “They’re not as delicate to the contact as they had been.”
The restoration course of was “very painful,” he mentioned. He mentioned that he had not learn information associated to the incident, nor had he listened to the tapes or watched the movies.
“I’ve tried to place it out of my thoughts,” he mentioned, taking periodic pauses to keep up his composure.
“I’ve made the very best effort I probably can to not relive this.”
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