The Department of Justice (DOJ) is demanding a 40-year prison sentence for David DePape, who was recently convicted of attacking Paul Pelo...
The Department of Justice (DOJ) is demanding a 40-year prison sentence for David DePape, who was recently convicted of attacking Paul Pelosi husband of former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.
DePape was convicted last November of assault and attempted kidnapping after he broke into the Pelosi residence and bludgeoned Paul Pelosi with a hammer while looking for her.
In a court filing on Friday, the DOJ confirmed they were seeking the maximum punishment his crimes:
The nature and circumstances of the offense warrant statutory maximums on each count. The core of both crimes—the attempted kidnapping of a public official and the assault on the family member of a public official—is violence aimed at punishing the former Speaker of the House of Representatives. Both crimes are an assault on our democracy and fundamental values.
The jury rejected the defendant’s contentions that he was motivated by something other than the Speaker Emerita’s official position, but even taking his own statements as true for a moment, the defendant claimed that he went to the Pelosi’s home to inflict violence on the Speaker Emerita. He wanted to teach a lesson. The violent lessons that the defendant wanted to teach are not permitted in this country, and the sentence that this Court imposes must reflect the nature and circumstances of the offense.
The filing added that there was “nothing about the history and characteristics of the defendant that warrant leniency.”
It continued:
The defendant has admitted—indeed bragged—that he knew what he was doing when he packed his bags and went to the Pelosi’s home. The government acknowledges that the defendant had difficult relationship with his biological father and then with a romantic partner.
To the extent that these relationships bear on the instant offense, it appears to be because of some amount of isolation. To be sure, isolation may have led the defendant to spend time on YouTube and consuming media that led him to adopt the views that motivated his actions. But the defendant’s history and characteristics do not excuse the instant offense, nor give a reason for leniency given the violent extremism that the defendant unleashed in October 2022.
During his trial in San Francisco , DePape apologized to Paul Pelosi and said that he was not his intended target.
“When he was on the ground breathing, I was really scared for his life,” DePape said in federal court in San Francisco. “And later in the hospital, I felt really bad for him because we had a really good rapport and things were going good until the last second.”
DePape’s sentencing is scheduled for May 17th.
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