What is David DePape charged with? Paul Pelosi attacker pleads not guilty to federal charges

On Tuesday, November 15, David DePape, 42, pleaded not guilty in a San Francisco federal court. He was arrested for allegedly assaulting Nancy Pelosi's husband, Paul Pelosi, 82.

CNN reported that DePape has been charged with attempted kidnapping of a federal official and assault on the immediate family of a federal official. The incident took place on October 28, 2022, when he entered Pelosi's home in San Francisco, California, reportedly to attack US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.

According to prosecutors, after he failed to find Nancy Pelosi, DePape assaulted Paul Pelosi with a hammer before keeping him hostage. For the assault charge, he could face up to 30 years in prison. The kidnapping charge could get him a maximum of 20 years.

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David DePape also faces six state charges

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, along with the federal charges faced by David DePape, he also faces six state charges. The state charges include attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, threatening the family member of an elected official, residential burglary, elder abuse, and false imprisonment of an elder.

In the Federal Indictment, officials accused David DePape of preparing a list of targets, including state figures, federal officials, and at least one university educator.

Upon DePape's arrest, he allegedly revealed his plans to the police, describing Nancy Pelosi as a primary target because he considered her a 'leader of the pack'.

DePape said:

“I’m sick of the insane (...) lies coming out of Washington, D.C. I came here to have a little chat with (Paul Pelosi) and his wife."

He continued:

“I didn’t really want to hurt him, but you know this was a suicide mission. I’m not going to stand here and do nothing even if it cost me my life."

In an interview with ABC, Adam Gasner, a criminal defense lawyer with 22 years of experience, told reporters that he was not surprised that DePape pleaded not guilty to the charges made against him. Gasner said:

"Any defense lawyer would advise their client to plead not guilty initially. 99 percent of criminal defendants would be pleading not guilty at this point."

He added that most cases often end with a plea bargain. He said:

"If you want to look at the odds, this case will resolve by way of a plea bargain at some point. However, this is a very publicized case. Very unusual situation. That really remains to be seen."

While David DePape reportedly acted alone, the Washington Post wrote that while his early online history reflected spiritualist and fringe left-wing political sentiments, after 2013, his online history tied him to radical alt-right conspiracy theories, including Qanon and Pizza Gate.