Man Accused Of Attacking Paul Pelosi Pleads Not Guilty In 1st Court Appearance

David DePape, arrested after allegedly breaking into House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's home and attacking her husband, pleaded not guilty in his first court appearance Tuesday. The judge ordered him to be held in jail without bail.

The arraignment lasted about eight minutes. DePape entered the not-guilty plea and waived his right to a hearing within 10 days. He only spoke to say "yes" to a question from the judge and to clarify the pronunciation of his last name when asked about that.

DePape was charged with attempted murder, residential burglary, assault, elder abuse, and threatening a public official, charges that could put him in prison for 13 years to life. 

Before his arraignment Tuesday afternoon, DePape had been transferred to county jail Tuesday after being released from San Francisco General Hospital. DePape had been in the hospital psychiatric ward under heavy guard following the attack. 

In court Tuesday, DePape emerged with his right arm in a sling. His public defender said he had suffered a dislocated shoulder during his arrest at the Pelosi home. 

"I haven't even seen the police reports," said public defender Adam Lipson. "I met my client last night, for a brief meeting, for the first time."

Lipson declined to describe his client'

"What I will say is that there has been a lot of speculation regarding Mr. DePape's vulnerability to misinformation," Lipson told the press assembled at the Hall of Justice. "And that's certainly something that we're going to look into, that we're going to delve into as his defense team."

"I think what is clear is that this case is vulnerable to misinformation," said San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins. "We are seeing it spread across all platforms at this point. We need to make sure that the record is clear of what happened in this situation. For all parties."

Jenkins says one goal for her office is to push back on rumor and misinformation, but for now, she's made a decision not to release the 911 call from the Pelosi home.

"We are going to make a choice of whether or not that's something that should be played during the course of his preliminary hearing, and of course at a later trial," Jenkins said. "That's when that would be made available."

A bail hearing and a hearing on federal charges were still pending. DePape's next court appearance on the state charges was scheduled for Nov. 4.

The charges stem from his arrest early Friday morning at the Pelosi home. According to San Francisco police, they responded to reports of a home break-in at approximately 2:27 a.m. and arrived to find DePape attacking 82-year-old Paul Pelosi with a hammer.

"When officers arrived on scene, they encountered an adult male and Mrs. Pelosi's husband, Paul," SFPD Chief Bill Scott told reporters. "Our officers observed Mr. Pelosi and the suspect both holding a hammer. The suspect pulled the hammer away from Mr. Pelosi and violently assaulted him with it."

"Our officers immediately tackled the suspect, disarmed him, took him into custody, requested emergency backup and rendered medical aid," he added.

Along with the hammer that DePape used to attack Pelosi, he also had zip ties, which he admitted to having so he could take Nancy Pelosi hostage. 

Paul Pelosi remains hospitalized after undergoing surgery to repair a fractured skull and faces a long road to recovery. DePape was hospitalized for mental observation until the San Francisco County Sheriff took him into custody before Tuesday's hearing in San Francisco County Superior Court. 

First published on November 1, 2022 / 4:09 PM

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