The man accused of brutally attacking the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., told police officers at the scene that he was on "a suicide mission" and had additional targets, according to court documents filed Tuesday.
The new details came shortly after California prosecutors charged David DePape, 42, with attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, residential burglary, false imprisonment and threatening a public official in connection with Friday’s attack on Paul Pelosi.
DePape, who appeared in state court Tuesday, pleaded not guilty to all charges.
After he entered his plea, prosecutors filed a detention memo revealing comments DePape is alleged to have made to authorities and medics Friday.
“I’m sick of the insane f------ level of lies coming out of Washington, D.C. I came here to have a little chat with his wife," DePape said he told Paul Pelosi, according to the filing.
“I didn’t really want to hurt him, but you know this was a suicide mission. I’m not going to stand here and do nothing even if it cost me my life,” it says he added.
Asked whether he had other plans besides the attack at Pelosi's house, DePape named several "prominent" state and federal politicians, their relatives and a local professor, according to the court filing. None of the people were named.
DePape, who was arraigned Tuesday afternoon in San Francisco, could face 13 years to life in prison if he is convicted. During the 15-minute hearing, DePape wore an orange jumpsuit, and his arm was in a sling. His public defender, Adam Lipson, told reporters afterward that DePape's shoulder was dislocated when police arrested him Friday. Lipson said he plans to investigate DePape's "vulnerability to misinformation" as part of the defense.
DePape, who will continue to be held in the county jail, is set to appear in court again Friday for his bail hearing.
He also faces two federal charges in connection with the assault: attempted kidnapping and assault with intent to retaliate against a federal official by threatening or injuring a family member. Those charges, which the Justice Department announced Monday, carry a maximum of 50 years in prison.
DePape specifically targeted the Pelosis' home to confront the House speaker, not realizing she was in Washington, D.C., at the time, San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins alleged. Based on statements and comments DePape is alleged to have made in the house during the encounter with Paul Pelosi, the attack appeared to be "politically motivated," Jenkins said.
Investigators allege DePape attacked Pelosi with a hammer after police arrived at the home early Friday. Pelosi, 82, underwent surgery Friday to repair a skull fracture and serious injuries to his right arm and hands.
The complaint filed by federal prosecutors alleges DePape sought to kidnap the House speaker when he broke into the San Francisco residence. Police said they recovered zip ties in Pelosi’s bedroom and in the hallway near the front door of the home. In DePape's backpack, they also found “a roll of tape, white rope, one hammer, one pair of rubber and cloth gloves, and a journal,” they said.
DePape is alleged to have told police in an interview on the day of the attack that he was “going to hold Nancy hostage and talk to her.”
“If Nancy were to tell DePape the ‘truth,’ he would let her go, and if she ‘lied,’ he was going to break ‘her kneecaps,’” investigators alleged in the federal complaint.
The suspect is also alleged to have told investigators that “by breaking Nancy’s kneecaps, she would then have to be wheeled into Congress, which would show other members of Congress there were consequences to actions.”
Pelosi said in a statement Monday night that her husband was "making steady progress on what will be a long recovery process."
