David DePape found guilty on five counts in connection with the attack on Paul Pelosi

CNN
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David DePape, the man convicted in federal court of violently attacking Paul, the husband of House Speaker Emeritus Nancy Pelosi, was found guilty in state court on five counts.

A California jury found DePape guilty of first-degree burglary, false imprisonment, threatening a family member of a public official, aggravated kidnapping and preventing or deterring a witness by force or threat. The verdict comes as DePape already faces a 30-year prison sentence from his conviction last year in connection with the October 2022 attack.

DePape showed no visible reaction in court on Friday when the verdict was announced, and his lawyer later said they intend to appeal the verdict.

Before trial, Judge Harry M. Dorfman dismissed three of the charges against DePape, including attempted murder, assault on an elderly person and assault with a deadly weapon, because DePape’s defense attorneys argued it amounted to double jeopardy. DePape was convicted in federal court last November of assaulting a close family member of a federal official and attempted kidnapping of a federal official in connection with the attack.

Defense attorney Adam Lipson said DePape was disappointed with Friday’s verdict, which the jury deliberated on for nearly 12 hours over three days.

“He’s lived a very isolated and lonely life and has been involved in a lot of situations involving conspiracy theories,” Lipson said. “And, you know, he also has a mental illness, so he’s dealing with that right now.”

“It’s really unfortunate that he was charged in this way. It was a textbook kind of vindictive prosecution,” Lipson said.

CNN has asked the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office for comment on Lipson’s comments.

In a statement Friday, San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said the verdict “brings justice and ensures that Mr. DePape will face the consequences for his heinous crimes against the Pelosi family and our democracy.”

Aaron Bennett, a spokesman for Nancy Pelosi, said in a statement Friday that the family was “grateful for the good thoughts and prayers they continue to receive,” adding: “Speaker Pelosi and her family will refrain from further substantive comment until the verdict is announced.”

A date for the verdict has not yet been set.

Federal prosecutors alleged last year that DePape broke into the Pelosi family home and “engaged in a violent plan to kidnap” and “take Nancy Pelosi hostage.” DePape’s attorney at the time acknowledged that DePape had attacked Paul Pelosi, but argued that his motive for the attack did not match the federal charges against him.

Testifying in his own defense, DePape told the jury that he was looking for Nancy Pelosi and that her husband was not on his target list. He was “surprised and confused,” he said, when he found out the congresswoman was not home.

“I tell him, ‘I have other goals, but if you stop me, I’ll go through you,'” DePape said, citing a conversation with Paul Pelosi.

“I reacted. I hit him on the head,” he continued. “I reacted because my plan was basically ruined.”

The morning before the jury in the state case As deliberations began, Gypsy Taub, DePape’s ex-wife, was escorted out of the courtroom. She was barred from the courtroom and the second floor of the courthouse for the remainder of the trial after a judge alleged she attempted to influence jury members.

According to the AP, graffiti from a website run by Taub that spreads conspiracy theories was discovered in a women’s restroom near the courtroom on Tuesday. CNN observed her outside the courtroom on Monday handing out notes with a website address that also spread conspiracy theories. A communications representative for the San Francisco County Superior Court said they could not comment on pending cases.

This story has been updated with additional reporting.

CNN’s Piper Hudspeth Blackburn contributed to this report.