Prosecutors say Depay broke into the Pelosi’s San Francisco home in late October and struck Paul Pelosi over the head with a hammer after demanding the whereabouts of the congresswoman, who was in Washington D.C., state and A slew of federal charges could have sent him down. Jail for life.
A press coalition that includes Politico sought body camera footage of responding San Francisco Police Department officers, audio of Paul Pelosi’s 911 calls, surveillance footage from Pelosi’s home, and audio of Dippe’s police interview.
The footage shows both Paul Pelosi and Deppe clutching a hammer when officers arrived at the Pelosi residence on the morning of October 28. , after which both men fall to the floor and an officer calls for a medic.
One of the responding officers testified in December that he saw Paul Pelosi with a “pool of blood” blooming around his head. The 82-year-old underwent surgery for a skull fracture and injuries to his head and hand. Nancy Pelosi told CNN’s Chris Wallace this month that her husband was still working to “get back to normal” after suffering a head injury.
The vandalism and attack stunned San Francisco and reverberated through national politics, setting off a torrent of violent rhetoric directed at Nancy Pelosi and other elected officials.
According to prosecution evidence, Dieppe, who entered a plea of not guilty, said he targeted the congresswoman because she was second in line for the presidency and that she embodied “the evil in Washington.”
He also told police he wanted to go against others, including California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Hunter Biden, the president’s son.
DePape’s online history shows that he is steeped in extremist and Trump-aligned narratives such as the QAnon conspiracy theory. He is being held for trial without bail, with a hearing likely to be scheduled in February.
The San Francisco District Attorney’s Office and DePep’s public defender sought to prevent the evidence from being released to media organizations, claiming it could undermine DePep’s right to a fair trial. They argued that it could be manipulated and incited conspiracy theories.
Assistant District Attorney Phoebe Maffei argued, “The incriminating evidence could easily, once publicly released, be altered so that members of the jury pool could see an incorrect piece of evidence from this trial.”
Judge Stephen M. Murphy dissented, calling such arguments “speculation”.
Murphy said, “In this case, I fail to see how the release of these exhibits would affect the defendant’s right to a fair trial.”
Conspiracy theories have clouded the case since its inception, as unsupported claims about a coverup or an unidentified third person in the home spread on social media.
San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins has warned about misinformation, and Depay’s attorney Adam Lipson on Wednesday decried “the myriad of false conspiracy theories that have already been publicized regarding this case.”