The charges stemming from the Oct. 28 burglary of the couple’s San Francisco home are the same but supersede those in an earlier federal complaint filed Oct. 31. The attack rattled the political world days before hotly contested midterm elections, the first nationwide elections since the Jan. 6, 2021, uprising at the US Capitol. Threats against lawmakers and election officials were at an all-time high, and authorities issued warnings of rising extremism in the U.S. David DePape, 42, of Richmond, a San Francisco suburb, was arrested Oct. 28 inside the Pelosi residence after San Francisco police responded to Paul Pelosi’s 911 call. He told officers he was sleeping when a man he had never seen before entered his bedroom looking for Nancy Pelosi. Officers found 82-year-old Paul Pelosi and DePape fighting over a hammer, but DePape gained control and struck Pelosi in the head, according to the indictment. He says officers later found a glass door to the back porch had been broken. They found a roll of tape, white rope, a second hammer, a pair of rubber and cloth gloves and zip ties. David Wayne DePape, 42, went before San Francisco Superior Court Judge Diane Northway on Nov. 1, shown in this courtroom sketch. He was indicted on federal charges by a grand jury on Wednesday. (Vicki Behringer/Reuters) DePape’s public defender, Adam Lipson, did not immediately return phone and email messages. Last week he pleaded not guilty to related state charges against DePape, a Canadian-born fringe activist who dabbles in conspiracy theories. A San Francisco judge ordered DePape held without bail on the state charges of attempted murder, burglary and elder abuse, and he was also placed in federal custody in the case. He was indicted on federal charges, including assaulting a member of the immediate family of a US official with intent to retaliate against the official in the performance of his official duties. A second charge alleges that he attempted to kidnap a US official in the performance of his official duties. The first count carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison and the second carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Pelosi was released from the hospital last week after undergoing surgery for his injuries. Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat who is second in line to the presidency, was in Washington at the time of the attack. DePape grew up in Powell River, BC, but moved to California to be with a girlfriend, stepfather Gene DePape told The Associated Press last week. He said his stepson has three children with two wives. A U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter said DePape entered the United States legally in 2000 and later left the country and returned a few times, including a March 2008 border entry San Ysidro of San Diego Crossing. Most Canadians are not required to obtain a visa to enter the US as tourists and can stay for up to six months. The official said it was unclear why US authorities allowed DePape to be admitted to the country after his 2000 entry remained.
