House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stated Thursday that Paul Pelosi had been discharged from a San Francisco hospital after undergoing surgery to treat a skull fracture and injuries to his hand and arm.
“Paul is grateful to the 911 operator, emergency responders, trauma care team, ICU staff, and the entire [Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital] medical staff for their excellent and compassionate life-saving treatment he received after the violent assault in our home,” Nancy Pelosi said in a statement.
Paul Pelosi, the House Speaker’s husband, is home and recuperating barely six days after the terrible attack last week, according to a person familiar with the situation, which the speaker confirmed in a statement.
“Paul remains under doctors’ care as he continues to progress on a long recovery process and convalescence,” Nancy Pelosi said. “He is now home surrounded by his family who request privacy.”
According to the city’s police chief, authorities entered the residence about 2:27 a.m. local time Friday and found Pelosi fighting over a hammer with a guy who has since been identified as David DePape. Officers observed DePape “violently assaulting” Pelosi with the hammer before tackling and arresting him.
Pelosi was transported to the hospital following the incident and underwent “successful surgery to treat a skull fracture and major damage to his right arm and hands,” Nancy Pelosi’s spokesperson Drew Hammill said in a statement early Friday evening. He is likely to recover completely.
During his first appearance in court on Tuesday, DePape pled not guilty to all state counts.
At his arraignment in a San Francisco courtroom, he also forfeited his right to a hearing within 10 days. Judge Diane Northway has scheduled a preliminary hearing and bail setting hearing for Friday in San Francisco Superior Court.
Following last week’s break-in at the couple’s San Francisco home, DePape, 42, has been charged with a slew of felonies, including assault, attempted murder, and attempted kidnapping, the US Attorney’s Office and the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office stated on Monday. According to the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California, he was charged with one count of “attempted kidnapping of a US official.” According to an FBI document also published on Monday, DePape informed authorities he wanted to “keep hostage” Nancy Pelosi.
The attempted kidnapping offense carries a possible jail sentence of 20 years. In federal court, he has yet to submit a plea.
The Department of Homeland Security said late Wednesday that DePape was in the country illegally and might face deportation.
“U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) lodged an immigration detainer on Canadian national David DePape with San Francisco County Jail, Nov. 1, following his Oct. 28 arrest,” the department said.