Paul Pelosi Released From Hospital Nearly a Week After Attack

John Harney
·2 min read
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(Bloomberg) -- Paul Pelosi has been released from a hospital almost a week after he was attacked in the San Francisco home he shares with his wife, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

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“Paul remains under doctors’ care as he continues to progress on a long recovery process and convalescence,” the speaker’s office said in a statement on Thursday night. “He is now home surrounded by his family who request privacy.”

An intruder broke into the couple’s home early last Friday and struck Paul Pelosi, 82, with a hammer. He underwent surgery for a fractured skull and sustained injuries to his right arm and hands.

The suspect in the case, David DePape, had been looking for Nancy Pelosi, according to the police.

DePape, 42, told investigators that he planned to take the speaker hostage and break her kneecaps if she didn’t tell “the truth,” according to an FBI affidavit. San Francisco police recovered plastic ties, a roll of tape, rope, a hammer and rubber and cloth gloves.

DePape, who faces a variety of California and federal charges, has been linked to blog posts that railed against the government and technology giants, and espoused far-right conspiracy theories.

He has pleaded not guilty.

Pelosi’s release from the hospital was reported earlier by CNN.

In a speech in Washington on Wednesday evening, President Joe Biden drew a line from former President Donald Trump’s refusal to accept his loss in the 2020 election and the attack on the US Capitol to the assault on Paul Pelosi.

Biden implored Americans to consider the future of democracy when they vote in next week’s midterm elections, saying that Trump’s “big lie” about 2020 defeat had inspired extremism and violence.

On Tuesday, the chief of the US Capitol Police said that rising political tension has greatly increased the danger for members of Congress and said the agency must bolster protection for lawmakers.

On Wednesday, the Capitol Police announced the opening of an internal review investigating why no one was actively monitoring cameras watching the Pelosi home when the break-in occurred.

The statement from the speaker’s office said Paul Pelosi, a businessman, was “grateful to the 911 operator, emergency responders, trauma care team, ICU staff,” and the hospital’s medical teams “for their excellent and compassionate life-saving treatment he received after the violent assault in our home.”

--With assistance from Emily Wilkins, Jennifer Jacobs, Billy House and Josh Wingrove.

(Updates with CNN reporting release earlier.)

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