Politico’s deputy managing editor tweeted Monday reports of a third person at Paul Pelosi’s home are “baseless,” even though the claims were based on Politico’s own reporting.
David DePape, 42, attacked Pelosi on Friday morning at his San Francisco home, allegedly assaulting Pelosi with a hammer. DePape has since been charged with crimes including attempted homicide, assault with a deadly weapon and elder abuse.
Politico released an article Monday entitled “Prominent conservatives share online disinformation about Paul Pelosi Assault.” (RELATED: MSNBC Anchors Claims Republicans ‘Are Scared’ To Condemn Attack On Paul Pelosi)
“Among those baseless claims: that a third person answered the door when police arrived at the Pelosi home, which San Francisco law enforcement has said is untrue,” the report said.
Authorities later clarified Pelosi and DePape were the only two individuals inside the home at the time of the break-in, according to the Washington Examiner.
While police ultimately clarified there was not a third person, Politico seemingly originally reported Friday that there was a third individual at the home at the time of the attack.
Politico writer says people are sharing baseless claims…from Politico. https://t.co/5FYYe2exJo pic.twitter.com/QEzwkUclFA
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) October 31, 2022
“Officers arrived at the house, knocked on the front door and were let inside by an unknown person. They discovered DePape and Pelosi struggling for a hammer, and after they instructed them to drop the weapon, Scott said, DePape took the hammer and ‘violently attacked’ Pelosi,” Politico reported Friday, citing San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott.
The sentences appear to imply that a third person, the “unknown person,” let police inside, where they then found Pelosi and DePape.
Politico updated the story late Monday afternoon, changing the in-story copy to say officers “arrived at the house and entered through the front door, which someone — they didn’t specify who — opened from the inside.”
But the outlet’s original reporting is the basis for several conservatives who have speculated there may have been a third person involved.
The Daily Caller reached out to the authors who wrote the original piece, Jeremy White and Nicholas Wu, as well as Politico’s Deputy Managing Editor Elana Schor, but has not received a response at the time of publication.