(San Francisco) The trial of the man who attacked the husband of former Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi with a hammer must begin Monday with the selection of jurors responsible for judging this case, which had shaken the American political class at the last fall.
The suspect, David DePape, a follower of numerous conspiracy theories, had violently fractured Paul Pelosi’s skull with his tool, before being arrested by police officers who filmed the attack with their body-worn camera.
During this federal trial, the forty-year-old is prosecuted for assault and attempted kidnapping of Mme Pelosi. He is also the subject of separate proceedings by the Californian courts.
He has pleaded not guilty and faces a sentence of up to life in prison.
This Canadian citizen, former nudist activist, entered the Pelosi home in San Francisco, while the Speaker of the House of Representatives was in Washington.
Equipped in particular with rope, pairs of gloves and adhesive tape, he came across her husband, Paul Pelosi, and asked: “Where is Nancy? » Before being attacked, the octogenarian had managed to call the police emergency number.
After his arrest, Mr. DePape explained to the police that he planned to “break the kneecaps” of the parliamentarian if she did not admit to the “lies” of the Democratic camp.
Among the conspiracy theories he shared on social networks, he notably claimed against all evidence that the American elections had been stolen.
The suspect also explained to investigators that he was on a “suicide mission” and planned to attack “several prominent political figures”, as well as members of their families and a professor in the region, according to a document from the San Francisco prosecutor’s office.
Leader of the Democrats in the House, Mme Pelosi had already been targeted by demonstrators who forced entry to the Capitol on January 6, 2021, without managing to get their hands on her. She is regularly at the center of conspiracy theories fueled by the American extreme right.
Mr. DePape’s defense tried unsuccessfully to obtain a change of scenery for the trial, arguing that its holding in San Francisco, a region that Mr.me Pelosi represented for more than 30 years in Congress, harming the impartiality of the debates.
If convicted, he could be deported to Canada after serving his prison sentence, because he was illegally in the United States, according to local television channel KRON4.