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Paul Pelosi testifies about hammer attack
Nancy Pelosi's husband Paul Pelosi took the witness stand to describe being attacked by an intruder who struck him in the head with a hammer at the couple's San Francisco home. David DePape is accused of federal crimes related to altercation, which was partially recorded on cameras worn by San Francisco police.
SAN FRANCISCO - Paul Pelosi recounted publicly for the first time Monday what happened the night he was attacked by a man in the San Francisco home he shares with former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, recalling how shocking it was to see a man standing at his bedroom door, then how the man whacked him in the head with a hammer.
The attack left Pelosi hospitalized for more than a week.
"It was tremendous shock to recognize that somebody had broken into the house and looking at him and looking at the hammer and the ties, I recognized that I was in serious danger, so I tried to stay as calm as possible," Pelosi told jurors as he testified in the trial of David DePape.
Prosecutors said DePape, 43, smashed Pelosi in the head with a hammer inside his San Francisco home in the early morning of October 28, 2022.
Pelosi recalled DePape asking, "'Where's Nancy?'"
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LISTEN: 911 call released in Paul Pelosi hammer attack
The 911 call was released in the attack on Paul Pelosi at his San Francisco home.
Pelosi, 83, said he managed to call 911, but he could not speak candidly with the operator as DePape was right next to him.
He said by the time police officers arrived at his home, he had managed to get DePape downstairs. He testified that he was the one to answer the door when officers showed up, and that DePape still had the hammer in his hand.
Paul Pelosi video shows moment of brutal hammer attack
Video shows a home intruder attack Nancy Pelosi's husband with a hammer, leaving the 82-year-old with a fractured skull.
"I turned and tried to put my hand on the hammer, he pushed it aside and whacked me on the head and arm," said Pelosi.
The defense did not cross-examine Pelosi.
During the trial, prosecutors also played a tape of the defendant when he called KTVU reporter Amber Lee in January 2023.
"I want to apologize to everyone, I messed up, what I did was really bad. I'm so sorry I didn't get more of them," he said over the call.
If convicted, DePape faces life in prison. He also has pleaded not guilty to charges in state court of attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, residential burglary and other felonies. A state trial has not been scheduled.
Olga R. Rodriguez of the Associated Press contributed to this report.