Paul Pelosi attack: Court hears DePape was on ‘suicide mission’ as Megyn Kelly raises conspiracies
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David DePape, the man accused of beating House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband Paul with a hammer during a struggle in the couple’s San Francisco home, pleaded not guilty in his first court appearance on Tuesday.
In court documents, prosecutors described Mr DePape as embarking on a “suicide mission” targeting the Pelosis, as well as other state and federal officials.
The 42-year-old could face as many as 50 years in prison if found guilty on state and federal charges.
Police body camera footage of the attack could be shown during the trial, police told The Independent.
Elsewhere, Sen Ted Cruz was called out by critics for propping up conspiracy theories about the violent assault on the House Speaker’s husband.
Brooke Jenkins said that her office will charge the suspect with attempted murder, residential burglary, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, false imprisonment of an elder, and threats to a public official and their family.
It came hours after it was announced that the suspect is facing two federal charges for threatening violence against a US official’s spouse.
David DePape pleads not guilty in first court appearance for Paul Pelosi hammer attack
The man accused of attacking House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband in his San Francisco home has pleaded not guilty in his first court appearance on Tuesday.
David DePape, 42, was arraigned on Tuesday afternoon during a brief appearance at San Francisco’s Superior Court, Reuters reported.
He is charged with attempted murder, residential burglary, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, false imprisonment of an elder, threats to a public official and their family, assault on the immediate family member of a federal official and attempted kidnapping of a federal official.
Mr DePape is being held without bail and will has bail hearing set for next Friday, his public defender Adam Lipson said in comments outside court.
Bevan Hurley is following this breaking news story for The Independent.
David DePape pleads not guilty in first court appearance for Paul Pelosi attack
David DePape faces more than five decades in prison if convicted of state and federal charges for hammer attack on Paul Pelosi
Megyn Kelly echoes conspiracies on Paul Pelosi attack: ‘I know enough to smell a rat’
Former Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly is the latest prominent conservative like Donald Trump to allege some kind of conspiracy is afoot surrounding a break-in on Friday at the home of Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, where an armed assailant brutally beat Ms Pelosi’s husband Paul with a hammer.
During an episode of Ms Kelly’s SiriusXM podcast on Monday, she alleged details about the break-in that have been shared with the public are the work of a “rat” somewhere in the San Francisco police force.
“I’m not sure how that happened,” she said on her show. “How do you have police officers on site and an 82-year-old gets attacked with a hammer in front of you when you have a gun as a police officer?”
More details in our full story.
Megyn Kelly echoes conspiracies on Paul Pelosi attack: ‘I know enough to smell a rat’
Former Fox News host implies police hiding details about attack
Republican Rep Adam Kinzinger says he and Rep Cheney aren’t ‘courageous’, just ‘surrounded by cowards’
Rep Adam Kinzinger, a Republican congressman from Illinois, addressed the recent reactions that have been expressed from those within his party about the attack on Paul Pelosi, where some of the elected officials had begun promoting conspiracy theories.
“When you convince people an election was stolen ... that there are lizard people that drink babies’ blood … eventually you’re gonna find somebody that acts on that,” the Republican lawmaker said during an interview with MSNBC.
When he was pressed about why Republicans are having such a hard time condemning the violent assault on Mr Pelosi, he responded by saying: “Liz [Cheney] and I are not courageous. There’s no strength in this. We’re just surrounded by cowards.”
Watch the full clip below:
ICYMI: Paul Pelosi attack suspect David DePape’s ex-partner apologises as report claims he was carrying zip ties
David DePape, the man suspected of attacking Nancy Pelosi’s husband, was “mentally ill for a long time” before the assault, his former partner claimed.
“He is mentally ill. He has been mentally ill for a long time,” said Gypsy Taub, who called the news station from the California Institution for Women in Corona, California on Friday evening.
The woman, who claimed to be the ex-life partner of Mr DePape and the mother of his children, is a well-known nudist activist in San Francisco the news outlet reported.
The pair met 20 years ago and raised their two sons and Taub’s daughter before they officially parted ways seven years ago, she said.
Read the full details of the interview with The Independent below.
Paul Pelosi attack suspect ex-partner apologises as report claims he had zip ties
Gypsy Taub, the alleged ex-partner of David DePape, described how the 42-year-old once disappeared for a year and when he returned he wasn’t the same person
San Francisco prosecutor says body cam footage shows Pelosi attack
In an interview on Tuesday with CNN, San Francisco district attorney Brooke Jenkins confirmed that police body camera footage shows the attack on Paul Pelosi in detail.
“You do see him get attacked on that footage,” the official told anchor Erin Burnett.
Ms Jenkins said she couldn’t release many more details at this early stage in the prosecution.
“Our main objective is to protect the investigation as well as the prosecution,” she added.
The prosecutor added that the alleged attacker had been “cooperative” with police so far, but his conversations with the San Francisco police will likely conclude now that he’s being tried and is represented by a public defender.
ICYMI: David DePape had a list of other potential targets, law enforcement confirmed
David DePape, the suspect involved in the attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband, reportedly had a list of other people he wanted to target in addition to the House Speaker, law enforcement confirmed to CBS News.
The sources told the news outlet that they wouldn’t go as far to characterise the list as a “hit list” but said that they suspect the 42-year-old might have been planning more attacks on other people.
The sources briefed on the investigation did not reveal the identities of the other people included on the list.
Signing off for today
That concludes today’s live coverage of the attack on Paul Pelosi and the case against suspected assailant David DePape.
Thank you for reading, and stay tuned with The Independent for the latest updates and analysis on this and all the day’s political news.
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