Authorities in Napa County, California, released the mugshot of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) husband, Paul, following an arrest last month.
Pelosi, 82, was arrested after driving under the influence last month, leading to his arrest, according to court records. The California Highway Patrol said several days ago that his late-model Porsche was involved in a collision before he was arrested and charged with two misdemeanors, including driving under the influence and having a blood alcohol content level of 0.08 percent.
“In Napa County, the decision to release or withhold mugshots or booking photos lies with the Napa County Department of Corrections, not the District Attorney’s Office,” a Napa County spokesperson said in a statement Monday about the release of the photo. “In the days after Mr. Pelosi’s arrest, Napa County followed the Department of Corrections’ policy regarding the release of booking photos and mugshots. Mr. Pelosi received the same treatment under that policy that all individuals released from County Jail receive.”
Speaker Pelosi’s office has not issued any comments about the arrest, describing it as a private matter. A spokesperson in May said the speaker was in Rhode Island at the time of the incident and was not accompanying her husband. The pair own a large, multi-acre winery in Napa County that is estimated to be worth millions of dollars.
In late May, his spokesman, Larry Kramer, said that “several news reports about Saturday night’s traffic incident involving Paul Pelosi have included incorrect information.”
Kramer said Pelosi stopped at the intersection before turning onto Route 29 when he was “hit on the back fender by a Jeep.”
“Mr. Pelosi was fully cooperative with California Highway Patrol officers who arrived a few minutes later,” he said.
Kramer did not make mention of Pelosi’s arrest for allegedly driving under the influence. It’s also not clear what he meant by “incorrect information” and did not specify which media made the alleged error.
“A prior driving offense erroneously attributed to Mr. Pelosi is untrue and likely refers to an unrelated person with the same name. This error must be corrected,” Kramer said in another statement to the Daily Beast. “There are also incorrect reports that misstate the timing of events.”