What is known about the attack on Paul Pelosi, husband of the US House Speaker

New details from investigations into the attack on Paul Pelosi, husband of Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, point out that the alleged attacker told police he was on a “suicide mission” and had a list of other targets.

Court documents released on Tuesday show that the man arrested in the case, David DePape, allegedly woke Paul Pelosi by staying at his bedside and prevented him from escaping. He demanded to know the whereabouts of the Speaker of the House.

“This was not a random act of violence. This wasn’t a random home burglary. This is something that was specifically targeted,” San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said Tuesday.

‘Suicide mission’

DePape told officers and doctors at the scene that he was tired of the “level of lying” present in Washington and went to the victim’s home to “talk a little bit with his wife. [de Paul Pelosi]”, according to a court case on Tuesday.

“I really didn’t mean to hurt you, but you know this was a suicide mission. I’m not going to sit here and do nothing, even if it costs me my life,” DePape said.

Ad comments

The attacker named several targets, according to the document, including prominent state and federal politicians and their relatives.

Asked by Erin Burnett of CNN , about DePape’s alleged plans, prosecutor Brooke Jenkins said that “there were other public officials who were apparently targeted by him.” He has been collaborating with the police and underwent a lengthy interview before obtaining representation through a lawyer, according to the district attorney.

The case, Jenkins said, is still “very recent” and she declined to give specific details about who would be potential targets.

Supposedly carried hammer

Court documents released on Tuesday revealed new details about the episode. DePape reportedly woke Paul Pelosi shortly after 2am. He was at the victim’s bedside, carrying a large hammer and several white armbands, as CNN previously reported.

“Are you Paul Pelosi?” asked DePape, the documents say. He then demanded to know, “Where is Nancy? Where’s Nancy?” Paul Pelosi then replied, “She’s not here.”

The suspect then threatened to tie up Paul Pelosi and prevent him from escaping through the elevator. Paul Pelosi asked DePape why he wanted to see his wife. “Well, she’s number two in the presidency, right?” DePape replied.

The attacker even allowed Paul to use the bathroom, at which point the victim was able to use her cell phone to call 911, according to court documents. He spoke to the police briefly through cryptic lines and managed to subtly identify himself to the officer, who was then able to escalate the call.

After the conversation, the two men went downstairs to the house. DePape was behind and carrying the hammer and clamps. Downstairs, DePape, noting that the police would be arriving soon, said, “I can finish you off.” He then walked over to Paul while holding the hammer upright.

The police arrived at the scene at this time. Afterwards, Paul opened the door and greeted them, one of them turned on his flashlight and saw the two men – victim and perpetrator – holding opposite ends of the hammer, according to court documents.

An officer ordered them to drop the hammer, but DePape pulled it away from Paul, “immediately retreated and attacked Pelosi, hitting him in the head with full force with the hammer, which knocked him unconscious.”

“Police officers ran into the house, approached the assailant and disarmed him. Paul remained unresponsive for about three minutes, waking up in a pool of his own blood,” the documents read.

How US Capitol Police Knew About the Break-In

US Capitol Police learned of the break-in at the San Francisco home about ten minutes after the attack, when an officer noticed police lights and sirens on a live camera at the Capitol Police command center in Washington, according to an informed source. on the attack.

THE CNN previously reported that there may be a video of the break-in, as there are security cameras in the house, according to two police sources.

DePape in court

DePape pleaded not guilty Tuesday to all state charges during his initial court appearance.

He was charged with a number of crimes, including assault, attempted murder and attempted kidnapping. The charge of attempted kidnapping can carry up to 20 years in prison. He has not yet appealed to the Federal Court.

Judge Diane Northway scheduled a hearing for the next 4th at the San Francisco Superior Court. The idea is to set a date for the preliminary hearing and the establishment of bail.

DePape’s attorney, Adam Lipson, said outside of court that “there’s been a lot of speculation, a lot of rumors, simply based on the nature of this case.”

Violence is a security alert

US Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger said Tuesday that after reassessing the incident, he understands that the current political climate calls for more resources for congressional security. “Today’s political climate calls for more resources to provide additional layers of security for members of Congress,” Manger said in a written statement.

California Democratic Representative Zoe Lofgren told CNN’s Brianna Keilar on Tuesday that lawmakers will no longer be safe “until we expose what the root cause of this political violence is.”

Trump supporters create conspiracy theory

Supporters of former President Donald Trump – spurred on by the Republican’s remarks – have created baseless conspiracy theories about the attack.

“There are strange things going on in that house in the last few weeks,” Trump said. “You know, probably, and I better not talk about it. The glass, it turns out, was broken from the inside out and, you know, it wasn’t a break-in,” the former president told conservative radio host Chris Stigall, claiming the window had been broken from the inside out.

Trump went on to say that he is “not a fan of Nancy Pelosi” but that what happened was “very sad”.

In the days following the attack, several prominent right-wing figures circulated conspiracy theories about the attack – including that Paul Pelosi and the intruder were gay lovers who had quarreled.

*Posted by Daniel Reis