Judge cites error and will reopen sentencing hearing for man who attacked Paul Pelosi – Boston Herald

FILE – David DePape is seen in Berkeley, California on December 13, 2013. A federal judge will reopen the sentencing hearing for DePape, who broke into Nancy Pelosi’s San Francisco home and bashed her husband with a hammer after she failed to allow him to speak during his court appearance last week. (Michael Short/San Francisco Chronicle via AP, File)

By OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ (Associated Press)

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A federal judge will reopen the sentencing hearing for the man who broke into Nancy Pelosi’s San Francisco home and beat her husband to death with a hammer after the judge did not allow him to speak at his court appearance last week .

On Friday, District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley sentenced David DePape to 20 years in prison for the attempted kidnapping of Nancy Pelosi and 30 years in prison for the attack on Paul Pelosi on October 28, 2022. This is the maximum sentence for both charges. The sentences will be served concurrently. DePape also received credit for the 18 months he spent in custody.

But in a court filing over the weekend, Corley said it was an “obvious error” on her part not to give DePape the opportunity to make a statement before he was sentenced, as required by law. She has scheduled a new hearing for May 28.

Neither prosecutors nor DePape’s defense attorneys pointed out Corley’s oversight at Friday’s hearing. “Nevertheless, it was the court’s responsibility to personally ask Mr. DePape if he wanted to speak,” Corley wrote.

Hours after Corley announced the sentence, prosecutors filed a motion stating that the court had failed to give DePape the opportunity “to speak or provide information in mitigation of the sentence,” according to the Federal regulation requires. They asked the court to reopen the sentencing hearing to give him that opportunity, saying the court had 14 days to correct an erroneous verdict.

However, DePape’s defense said they were opposed to retrieving their client, according to the prosecutor’s filing.

DePape’s defense attorneys appealed the verdict shortly after the verdict was announced Friday. Corley gave them until Wednesday to respond to her order to reopen the sentencing hearing.

A jury found DePape, 44, guilty in November of attempted kidnapping of a federal officer and assault on an immediate family member of a federal officer. The public prosecutor had demanded a prison sentence of 40 years.

The attack on then-82-year-old Paul Pelosi was captured on police body camera video just days before the 2022 midterm elections and sent shockwaves across the political world. He suffered two head wounds, including a fractured skull, which was repaired with plates and screws that he will wear for the rest of his life. His right arm and hand were also injured.

Before the sentencing, Angela Chuang, an attorney for DePape, asked the judge to consider prison sentences for those involved in the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

“The five most severe sentences for people convicted of seditious conspiracy, which is literally conspiring to overthrow the government, are between 15 and 22 years,” Chuang said.

Corley said the Jan. 6 analogy does not adequately reflect the seriousness of a break-in at an elected official’s private home. The attack on her home could have a chilling effect on people seeking office in the future, she said, adding that she believes DePape still poses a danger to society.

“I have seen nothing to suggest that if given the opportunity he would not again resort to his unfounded beliefs,” she said.

DePape admitted during the trial that he broke into the Pelosi home on October 28, 2022, with the intention of taking the speaker hostage and forcing her to admit corruption. “If she lied, I would break her kneecaps,” he said. Nancy Pelosi was not home at the time.

DePape also admitted to beating Paul Pelosi to death with a hammer when police showed up and said his plan to end what he saw as government corruption was faltering.

At trial, DePape, a Canadian who moved to the United States more than 20 years ago, testified that he believed news outlets had repeatedly lied about former President Donald Trump. In tirades posted on a blog and online forum that were removed after his arrest, DePape reiterated the baseless, right-wing QAnon conspiracy theory that the U.S. government is run by a cabal of devil-worshipping pedophiles.

Corley said DePape will be held by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and will be deported after serving his sentence.