Paul Pelosi saved his own life with the help of a quick-thinking 911 operator as he was savagely attacked in his San Francisco townhouse early Friday morning.
The 82-year-old husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi surreptitiously called 911 from his cell phone after David Depape allegedly broke into the residence through a back door and confronted Paul with a hammer.
10/28/22
KGO-TV
Paul reportedly kept his cool and spoke in code so he wouldn’t aggravate Depape. He also left the phone line open so the 911 operator could hear that his life was in danger as he rattled off 3 questions…”What’s going on? Why are you here? What are you doing to me?”
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Paul Pelosi Attacked in San Francisco Home During Break-In
The operator heard Paul in distress and quickly called police dispatch with an emergency message … “He states there is a male in the home and that he is going to wait for his wife. He stated that he doesn’t know who the male is but that his name is David and that he is a friend. He sounded somewhat confused.”
San Francisco District Attorney Brook Jenkins told CNN police responded to the scene within 2 minutes … “It was thanks to Mr. Pelosi having the ability to make that call” and the “instincts of that dispatcher to realize something was wrong'” that police got there so fast.
San Francisco Police Chief William Scott also gave props to the 911 operator, noting she treated the call as an “emergency” instead of a less urgent “welfare-check” … “I think this was life-saving.”
Scott said Paul and Depape were fighting over the hammer when cops first arrived at the townhouse. Depape was able to seize control of the hammer and allegedly clubbed Paul in the head. At one point, Depape reportedly yelled, “Where’s Nancy?”
Fox 10 Phoenix
Police sprang into action, tackling Depape, disarming him and taking him into custody. Depape was charged with attempted homicide, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse and burglary.
Investigators have not released a motive, although information publicly available on Depape’s background has provided some clues. Depape was reportedly a former nudist from British Columbia with a history of drug abuse. He has also gone online to post antisemitic rants, racial epithets and crazed COVID conspiracy theories.
As for Paul, he underwent surgery for a skull fracture at the hospital and is expected to make a full recovery.