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The San Francisco Superior Court released the video and audio recording Friday Last year’s attack Nancy Pelosi’s husband, Paul Pelosi, admitted he wanted to hold the then-House Speaker hostage, including police body-cam footage depicting the moment of the attack and a police interview of the attacker.
The video and audio files were released after a California court ruled that the district attorney’s office must make the materials public.
One of the videos shows body-cam footage of officers who arrived at Pelosi’s home when she was assaulted on October 28, 2022. The footage shows the chaos of the alleged attack David DeBabe attacked
In the video, which includes graphic and violent content, both Paul Pelosi and DeBabe appear to have their hands on a hammer and DeBabe is holding Pelosi’s arm as officers open the door.
“Drop the hammer,” says the officer.
“Oh, no,” DeBape replies.
DeBabe then grabbed the hammer from Pelosi’s hand and lunged at her, striking her in the head. Officers rushed into the home, subdued and handcuffed DePape.
Court releases video of attack on Paul Pelosi
In addition to the body-cam footage, the files include audio of a police interview with DeBape, a 911 call made by Paul Pelosi while DeBape was in the home, and surveillance video showing DeBape entering the home.
The files were exhibited at the preliminary court hearing. The court’s ruling follows a motion by a coalition of news organizations including CNN to mandate public release of the material.
DePape’s lawyers argued against the public release of the audio and footage, saying writing it down would “irreparably damage” his right to a fair trial. DePape has pleaded not guilty to state and federal charges related to the attack, including assault and attempted murder.
Speaking briefly to reporters Friday afternoon, Nancy Pelosi said she had “no intention of watching a deadly attack on my husband’s life.” She said Pelosi was “making progress, but it’s going to take a long time” and that she would not make additional public comments about the case.
In an audio recording of an interview with a San Francisco police officer following his arrest in October, DeBabe admitted to assaulting Paul Pelosi and described his plans to hold Nancy Pelosi hostage when she broke into the couple’s San Francisco home.
“Yeah, I mean, I’m not trying to walk away from this, so, I know what I did,” DeBabe said at the start of the 17-minute audio clip.
“Well, I’m going to hold her hostage and I’m going to talk to her,” DeBabe said of Nancy Pelosi. “If she’s telling the truth, I’m going to let her off scot free. If she’s lying, I’m going to break her knees.
In the interview, DePape espoused conspiracy theories about Democrats and Pelosi, complained about Democratic “crime” and made unsubstantiated claims that Nancy Pelosi and Democrats spied on former President Donald Trump’s campaign.
“They are criminals,” DeBabe said.
The officer walked DePape through the break-in at the Pelosi home and meeting Paul Pelosi. When asked why he didn’t leave after Paul Pelosi called the police, DeBabe compared himself to the Founding Fathers fighting with the British.
“When I left my home, I set out to fight tyranny. I did not surrender,” he said.
DeBabe explained why Paul attacked Pelosi after the police arrived, and they were both holding a hammer. “He thinks I’m going to surrender, and it’s like, I’m not there to surrender,” DeBabe said. “I told him I’d pass him. So I basically took it away from him and beat him.
In the 911 call audio, Pelosi appears to be subtly trying to tell the dispatcher that she’s in danger as DeBabe listens. CNN previously reported that Pelosi made a call while she went into her bathroom to charge her cell phone.
“Here’s a gentleman waiting for my wife to come back, Nancy Pelosi. He’s waiting for her to come back, but she’s not going to be here for many days, so I think we’re going to have to wait,” Pelosi told the dispatcher.
“He thinks everything is fine. I have a problem, but he thinks everything is fine,” Pelosi said at another point in the 2-minute, 56-second recording.
The dispatcher asked Pelosi if she knew who the man was, and Pelosi said she did not. “He tells me to put the phone down and do what he says,” Pelosi said.
“Who’s David?” the sender asked.
“I don’t know,” Pelosi said.
DeBape spoke later on the call. “I’m their friend,” he said.
“He says he’s a friend. But like I said…” Pelosi said.
“But you don’t know who he is?” Sender replied.
“No ma’am,” Pelosi said.
In surveillance footage, DeBape Pelosi is seen entering the home. The scene was captured on a US Capitol Police security camera installed at Pelosi’s San Francisco home.
He had previously said that the attack on Paul Pelosi was a factor in Nancy Pelosi’s departure from the House Democratic leadership.
EXCLUSIVE: Pelosi describes the moment she learned her husband had been assaulted
Court documents revealed DeBabe awoke Paul Pelosi shortly after 2 a.m. with a large hammer and several white zip ties, asking, “Where’s Nancy? Where’s Nancy?” He then threatened to tie up Paul Pelosi, preventing him from escaping through the elevator, according to the documents. DeBabe then reportedly told him, “I can take you out.”
Following the attack, Paul Pelosi was victimized surgery Nancy Pelosi’s spokeswoman said in a statement, “to repair a fractured skull and severe injuries to her right arm and hand.” On Thursday, Nancy Pelosi said her husband’s recovery was “one day at a time.” He said he did not know if he would watch the video when it was released.
This story has been updated with additional reporting.
