(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) The DOJ has recommended a 40-year federal prison sentence for the man who attempted to kidnap former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. Such a recommendation is a stark departure from the Democrat’s previous advocacy for criminal justice reform.
“Members of Congress came together to write a bill that reduces the impact of draconian mandatory minimums, and makes progress to address discriminatory sentencing laws,” Pelosi remarked in 2018, after the passage of the First Step Act.
She continued, “Its positive prison reforms for pregnant prisoners, juvenile prisoners, prisoners with substance abuse disorders and other low-risk inmates respect the spark of divinity within us all that makes us all worthy of respect.”
Enter David DePape, the man convicted of atrocious acts against the Pelosi family.
The recommendation for a 40-year federal prison sentence followed DePape’s intrusion into Nancy Pelosi’s residence on October 28, 2022, during which he brutally attacked her husband, Paul Pelosi, with a hammer.
As a result, DePape was charged and subsequently found guilty of attempting to kidnap the former speaker and assaulting an immediate family member of a U.S. official with the intent to “impede, intimidate, or interfere” with government business.
DePape is also facing state charges related to assault, including attempted murder, burglary, assault with a deadly weapon and elder abuse. If convicted, he could face life imprisonment in state jail.
DePape’s vicious assault on Paul Pelosi came amid widespread criticism of soft-on crime policies and debates over illegal immigration at the southern border.
Despite having no prior arrests, DePape was allegedly in the country illegally, having overstayed his non-immigrant U.S. visa from Canada.
“Because he apparently had no prior criminal convictions, DePape would not have been considered a ‘priority’ for removal under Biden administration DHS guidelines,” noted Andre R. Arthur, a fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies, in a report published Nov. 3, 2022.
He further stated, “Any time during his unlawful presence in the United States, DePape could have been removed back to Canada. But that did not happen, even though it appears he was arrested on local charges for trespass in San Francisco sometime around 2003.”
