Judicial Watch announced today that it received records from the California Highway Patrol (CHP) Public Records Unit that include 44 photos and five hours of audio/video footage depicting the misconduct and arrest of Paul Pelosi, husband to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. The material shows Mr. Pelosi invoked his wife’s name and shared his police charity membership during the arrest.
Judicial Watch obtained the records as a result of a June 14, 2022, Public Records Act request for information regarding Pelosi’s May 28, 2022, arrest in Napa, CA, for suspected alcohol intoxication while driving.
Video footage from Pelosi’s arrest depicts his interaction with the CHP officers. He first makes reference to himself as a “high profile person,” to which an officer responds, “right. I understand who you are. And I’m not out here to do anything to draw any negative attention to you. If you’ve being honest with me, there’s really nothing you should be worried about.”
Pelosi next invokes his wife’s name, telling the officers that his “wife, Nancy, is back on the East Coast.”
In response to Pelosi’s invocation, an officer says, “I’ll discuss with my supervisor – what he’s willing to do – just because we know you’re a high-profile person and I’ll consult with him what he wants to do at that point.”
Next, Pelosi insists that he should be able to call an Uber to pick him up but the officers explain that releasing a DUI suspect to an Uber driver is against county policy. But Pelosi insists that he will “give [the Uber driver] a tip or whatever the hell he needs.”
Pelosi continues to insist that an Uber driver pick him up but an officer responds, “Sir, we’ve done everything we can to work with you. Now we’re just dragging it out.” Pelosi replies, “May I speak with your captain please?” to which the officer says, “No, he already hung up. We’re going around in circles here.”
When asked for his driver’s license, Pelosi hands the police officer his donor card from the “11-99 Foundation,” a California Highway Patrol benevolent charity, along with his California driver’s license. Photos of Pelosi’s Porsche from the crash scene also show that his license plate bears the 11-99 Foundation’s logo.
The officer who arrested Paul Pelosi writes the following in his post-arrest supplemental report:
Throughout my conversation with [Pelosi], I observed the following objective signs and symptoms of alcohol intoxication: both of his eyes were red/watery, his speech was slurred, he had a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his person, and he failed to provide logical answers to multiple questions I asked.
A May 29, 2022, email titled “Newsworthy Arrest” from Captain John Blencowe to Napa County District Attorney Allison Haley explains that the CHP officers “attempted to cite and release [Pelosi], but he didn’t want anyone else to be aware of his arrest.”
“This material shows Paul Pelosi tried to name drop Nancy Pelosi’s name during his arrest,” stated Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton.”