In October of 2022, deranged nudist David DePape broke into Paul Pelosi's house and attacked him with a hammer, knocking him out and leaving him with a skull fracture. Mr. Pelosi is husband to Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), who was House Speaker at the time but was not at the San Francisco home.

Since that night, there has been much speculation on what actually occurred, with some arguing that police video showed Mr. Pelosi seemed like he might know DePape and that Pelosi's May 2022 DUI might indicate that the two men were drinking together. 

Police Bodycam footage of the attack on Paul Pelosi 😳 pic.twitter.com/9D5nGSUzLx

— RŌNIN (@ronin21btc) November 10, 2023

On Friday, as my colleague Jennifer Oliver O'Connell reported, DePape pleaded not guilty to a slew of charges and argued that he broke into the residence looking for Nancy Pelosi and that he believed “with every ounce of his body” that he was taking action to stop government corruption and the abuse of children by politicians and actors. Interestingly, he did not try the insanity defense, which is odd, considering he certainly seems to be off the reservation.

Friday afternoon, on @RedState.

Paul Pelosi Attacker David DePape on Trial: Defense Claims Nancy Pelosi's 'Official Duties' Not a Factor https://t.co/bM3TxYECCI #NancyPelosi #PaulPelosi #DavidDePape #QAnon

— Jennifer OO (@joliveroconnell) November 10, 2023

On Monday, Paul took the stand in a San Francisco courtroom to tell his side of the story:

An emotional Paul Pelosi has told a court in San Francisco that he tried not to think or talk about the events of October 28, 2022, when a hammer-wielding David DePape broke in and attacked him.

Pelosi, 83, described the moment he was woken up before dawn on October 28, saying that it was the first time he was telling the story.

'The door opened and a very, very large man came in with a hammer in one hand and some ties in the other hand,' Pelosi told the court, speaking calmly but with emotion in his voice.

Pelosi continued, saying DePape said, "Where's Nancy?" He described his efforts to somehow call 911 without setting off DePape, how they went downstairs where Pelosi hoped he'd be rescued, how DePape threatened to tie him up, and how he was able to finally call for help from the bathroom.

Officers had arrived at the house before Pelosi was attacked, but they were still assessing the situation when DePape suddenly attacked with the hammer. Pelosi remembered "waking up in a pool of blood" and being taken to the hospital. 

Earlier Monday, authorities had shared in court disturbing new information about purchases DePape had made online and brought to the crime scene, including a camping backpack, computer cables, body cameras, crayons, and, incredibly bizarrely, two Spooktacular unicorn costumes.

DePape faces up to 50 years in prison if convicted. 

This is an awful story, and although I abhor Nancy Pelosi's politics (she even stooped so low she blamed Republicans for the attack), I would not wish something like this on anyone. Based on some of the things DePape brought with him, it appears as if it could have actually been much worse for Paul Pelosi. He's lucky to be alive.

Now if only Nancy would go home to San Francisco and take care of him.