House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) home in San Francisco did not receive a security review for years before the October attack that left her husband, Paul, with a head injury, a police official revealed this week.
“Anytime there’s a change in leadership position, we will do an updated assessment,” Manger told the outlet before adding that members of Congress can also request the security assessments.
The Epoch Times has contacted Pelosi’s office for comment. A communications official told the network that her office would not speak about security matters.
According to a letter issued by Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), Pelosi was the alleged subject of about 632 threat cases that were opened by the U.S. Capitol Police. About 24 of those threats were sent to the Department of Justice for possible prosecution.
“We had more folks focused on her safety than any other member of Congress because of the number of threats that she had,” Manger told CNN. “The level of violence in our country directed toward political officials, government officials, it’s really at a point where I think that it’s as dangerous as it’s ever been to be an elected official,” he added, saying that the Capitol Police needs to update its “security posture” in the wake of the October incident.
Manger added that the threats are relatively high compared with recent years.
More Details
San Francisco Superior Court Judge Stephen Murphy earlier this month ruled that prosecutors had shown enough evidence during a preliminary hearing to move forward with a trial on the state charges, including attempted murder.Lt. Carla Hurley, who interviewed DePape for an hour the day of the attack, testified Wednesday that the defendant told her of other people he wanted to target, including California Gov. Gavin Newsom, actor Tom Hanks, and President Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden. Hurley did not say whether police had any evidence of a plot against them, and San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said after the hearing she couldn’t comment further.
DePape, who appeared in court wearing orange jail clothes, has pleaded not guilty to federal and state charges, including attempted murder, burglary, and elder abuse. He remains held without bail.
Family Has Different Story
Two members of DePape’s family have said that the 42-year-old Canada native did not appear to show any right-wing viewpoints and disputed officials’ claims that he had a political motivation in attacking Pelosi.Gonzalez, who conceded that he hasn’t seen his father in years, said DePape possessed “progressive views” and believed “in human rights, equality, and justice ... he was against the war, he was a peace activist, hardly a right-wing conservative, as he has been branded.”
DePape is due back in state court on Dec. 28, officials say.