| Attack on Paul Pelosi | |
|---|---|
 DePape (left) preparing to hit Pelosi (right) | |
| Location | San Francisco, California, U.S. |
| Date | October 28, 2022 c. 2:31 a.m. (PDT) |
| Target | Nancy Pelosi[1] |
Attack type | Attempted homicide by bludgeoning,[2][3] home invasion, assault with a deadly weapon |
| Weapons | Hammer |
| Victim | Paul Pelosi Sr. (survived) |
| Perpetrator | David Wayne DePape[4] |
| Motive | Desire to kidnap Nancy Pelosi |
| Verdict | Found guilty on all Federal and State counts[5] |
| Convictions | Federal:
California:
|
| Charges | California:
|
| Sentence | Federal: 30 years in prison California: Life imprisonment without the possibility of parole |
On October 28, 2022, Canadian far-right conspiracy theorist[6] David DePape attacked Paul Pelosi, the husband of Nancy Pelosi, the 52nd Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. He beat Pelosi with a hammer during a home invasion of the couple's Pacific Heights, San Francisco residence, leaving him with a fractured skull that required surgery.
San Francisco police arrested DePape, age 42, at the scene. He planned to take Speaker Pelosi hostage and interrogate her. Prosecutors believed the attack to be politically motivated. DePape had a history of mental health issues and drug abuse; before the attack, he had embraced various far-right conspiracy theories, including QAnon, Pizzagate, and Donald Trump's false claims of a stolen election in 2020. Online, he made conspiratorial, racist, sexist, and antisemitic posts, and pushed COVID-19 vaccine misinformation. His blog also contained delusional thoughts. At his subsequent trial, DePape testified that he was motivated by conspiracy theories and had hatched a "grand plan" to target Speaker Pelosi and others.
On October 31, DePape was charged with two federal crimes: assault of an immediate family member of a federal official with the intent to retaliate against the official on account of the performance of official duties; and attempted kidnapping of a federal official on account of the performance of official duties. He was also charged with six state felonies, including attempted murder, residential burglary, assault with a deadly weapon, and elder abuse. Within days, prominent right-wing figures, including former president Donald Trump, shared disinformation and misinformation about the attack, casting doubt on the assailant's motives and claiming that the attack was a false flag operation.
DePape was convicted of the federal charges on November 16, 2023. On May 17, 2024, he was sentenced to 30 years in prison and five years of supervised release from the federal charges. DePape was also convicted of five state charges on June 21, 2024, and subsequently sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on October 29, 2024.
- ^ Kaplan, Rebecca; Watson, Kathryn (October 28, 2022). "Suspect shouted 'Where is Nancy?' before assaulting Pelosi's husband at home, source says". CBS News. Archived from the original on October 31, 2022. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
- ^ "Man who attacked speaker's husband Paul Pelosi facing attempted homicide charge – as it happened: Summary". The Guardian. October 28, 2022. Archived from the original on October 30, 2022. Retrieved October 29, 2022.
- ^ Parker, Ashley; Allam, Hannah; Sotomayor, Marianna (October 29, 2022). "Attack on Nancy Pelosi's husband follows years of GOP demonizing her". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on October 31, 2022. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
- ^ Gregorian, Dareh (October 28, 2022). "Police identify Paul Pelosi's attacker as David DePape". NBC News. Archived from the original on October 31, 2022. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
- ^ "David DePape found guilty in federal trial over Paul Pelosi hammer attack". ABC News. Retrieved November 16, 2023.
- ^ "'Radicalized': Paul Pelosi attacker takes stand, testifies on right-wing conspiracies". MSNBC.com. Retrieved November 22, 2023.