Zeldin condemns Paul Pelosi attack, calls for overhaul in handling of disturbed individuals

New York Republican gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin condemned the assault on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband Paul Friday and called for a calm in heated rhetoric, saying there is no place for violence on any side of the political aisle.

"Whether it's the targeting of pro-life pregnancy centers, it's the targeting of Supreme Court justices, whether regardless of what branch of government you are, what your party is, what your ideology is, there's just no room for any of this type of violence or even threats of violence as part of the process," Zeldin said on "The Story with Martha MacCallum."

Paul Pelosi, 82, was assaulted with a hammer, police said. The attack suspect suspect has been identified by police as David DePape, who a law enforcement source tells Fox News was shouting "Where is Nancy, where is Nancy?" San Francisco Police Chief William Scott said DePape, 42, is now facing charges of attempted homicide, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, burglary and several other additional felonies. 

The motivation for the attack remains unknown. Very little information has been confirmed at this time about DePape. 

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Zeldin, who was attacked at a July event near Rochester by a man with a brass-knuckle-like object, highlighted a plan to look into potentially retrofitting established state infrastructure to house or treat emotionally disturbed individuals who commit crimes if he's elected New York governor.

While Zeldin and host Martha MacCallum acknowledged some 20th century institutions became infamous and had to be shuttered, the congressman said that with the right expertise and leadership, disturbed individuals can be housed or treated with care.

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Geraldo Rivera famously shined light on the state of America's institutions for the physically and mentally disabled with his 1972 investigation and expose of Staten Island's defunct Willowbrook State Hospital for Children.

Similarly, the former Pennhurst State School and Hospital in East Vincent Township, Pa., was shut down in 1987; several years after Philadelphia journalist Bill Baldini exposed the terrifying state of the youth-centric center in his 1968 "Suffer the Little Children" documentary. 

Around the same time, the sprawling Letchworth Village psychiatric complex in Haverstraw, N.Y. also shuttered – with Hudson Valley Magazine having cited Rivera's bombshell as helping lead to its end.

On "The Story," Zeldin noted how his state also has a handful of unused prisons that could be effectively used to treat the disturbed, as he noted attacks by such people on innocent civilians is on the rise – underlining institutions then must be run properly.

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"There were six [prisons] that were closed earlier this year. And these are sites that have newer infrastructure. They weren't closed down because they were falling into disrepair," he said.

"I believe that even financially, economically, it's the best move in the long run. We also have to understand we can't paint this all with the same broad brush. There are different challenges from one person to the next. But the idea that we're just going to allow these people to roam free on the streets is just a nonstarter for me."

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"It's going to require more than just 50 beds. We're talking about thousands. And we have the place to put it. I mean, if you just look at the six sites that were just closed earlier this year by the state of New York," Zeldin concluded.