David DePape, the suspect who admitted this week to striking Paul Pelosi in the head with a hammer after breaking into his former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s residence in San Francisco last year, was found guilty of assault and kidnapping Thursday.
A jury convicted DePape of attempted kidnapping of a federal official and assault on the immediate family member of a federal official with intent to retaliate against the official for the performance of their duties.
Following the jury’s decision, spokesperson Aaron Bennett said that the Pelosi family is “very grateful for the outpouring of prayers and warm wishes for Mr. Pelosi from so many across the country during this difficult time.”
“The Pelosi family is very proud of their Pop, who demonstrated extraordinary composure and courage on the night of the attack a year ago and in the courtroom last week,” read the family’s statement. “Thankfully, Mr. Pelosi continues to make progress in his recovery.”
Bennett said the former speaker and her family would not comment further on the matter, “given the ongoing state court proceedings.”
The guilty verdict comes as DePape also faces numerous charges at the state level in relation to the Oct. 28, 2022 attack, including assault with a deadly weapon, residential burglary and elder abuse. A trial date for those charges reportedly will be set by the end of this month.
Paul Pelosi testified himself against DePape during the federal trial that wrapped up this week, saying Monday that it was a “tremendous shock to realize someone broke into the house… I recognized that I was in serious danger … I tried to stay as calm as possible.”
DAVID DEPAPE ADMITS HITTING PAUL PELOSI WITH HAMMER AFTER BREAKING DOWN ON STAND
A courtroom sketch depicts the trial of David DePape in Federal Court in San Francisco, California on Tuesday. DePape became emotional while being questioned by his defense attorney. (Vicki Behringer)
Pelosi had said he was sleeping that night when “the door opened and a very large man came in with a hammer in one hand and some [zip] ties in the other hand. He said ‘Where’s Nancy?’ and that woke me up.”
On Tuesday, DePape admitted in court to striking Paul Pelosi in the head with a hammer at full force.
PAUL PELOSI TESTIFIES IN FEDERAL TRIAL
In this image taken from San Francisco Police Department bodycam video, the husband of former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Paul Pelosi, right, fights for control of a hammer with his assailant David DePape during an attack in the couple’s San Francisco home on Oct. 28, 2022. (San Francisco Police Department via AP, File)
DePape, who got emotional and cried on the stand before recounting the incident, said he wasn’t planning to hurt Paul Pelosi but ended up striking him once on the head after he tried to grab his hammer in the presence of responding police officers .
DePape testified that he felt bad about it afterward and said he would apologize to Paul Pelosi if he was in the courtroom that day.
David DePape is shown in Berkeley, California, on Dec. 13, 2013. (Michael Short/San Francisco Chronicle via AP, File)
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The hammer attack left Pelosi, 83, with a fractured skull. Nancy Pelosi was not in San Francisco at the time.
Fox News’ Jake Karalexis and Louis Casiano contributed to this report.
