Hunter Biden’s criminal trial begins after Trump’s conviction

WILMINGTON:

Hunter Biden’s criminal trial began Monday in Delaware federal court as President Joe Biden’s son faces gun charges in a historic case that begins four days after Donald Trump became the first former US president to be convicted.

Hunter Biden, 54, arrived in court for the first trial of the child of a sitting president, in which he will face three felony charges stemming from the purchase and possession of a handgun in 2018. He has pleaded not guilty. It’s one of two criminal cases he’s facing, with federal tax charges being brought separately in California.

First Lady Jill Biden, Hunter Biden’s wife Melissa Cohen Biden and his half-sister Ashley Biden were present at the trial in Wilmington before US District Judge Marielen Noreika.

“Jill and I love our son and are so proud of the man he is today,” Joe Biden said in a statement, adding that many families have loved ones who have overcome addiction.

Trump was convicted by a jury in New York state court on Thursday of 34 felony counts of falsifying documents to cover up payments to porn stars to avoid a sex scandal just before the 2016 US election that put him in the White House. Trump is the Republican candidate challenging Joe Biden, a Democrat, in the November 5 US election.

Also read: Trump says Americans could reach ‘tipping point’ if jailed

Hunter Biden’s trial gives Republicans an opportunity to distract from Trump’s legal troubles. Trump is scheduled to be sentenced on July 11. He has pleaded not guilty to three other pending criminal cases.

In the case brought by Trump-appointed US Special Counsel David Weiss last September, Hunter Biden was charged with lying about using illegal drugs when he bought a Colt Cobra revolver and illegally possessing the weapon for 11 days October 2018 Weiss, who has been investigating Hunter Biden since at least 2019, also brought the tax charges.

If convicted of all charges in the Delaware case, Hunter Biden faces up to 25 years in prison, although defendants generally receive lesser sentences, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Hunter Biden spent the weekend with his father in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, with the pair biking and attending church together on Saturday. The president, who was expected to depart Rehoboth Beach on Monday, traveled Sunday night to his home in Wilmington.

Potential jurors

Noreika began screening potential jurors for their ability to commit to serve the duration of the trial, which is expected to last until the end of next week.

“Do you think you can put aside your views on gun ownership,” she asked a potential juror, who replied that she could be impartial.

Other potential jurors were asked about addiction, convictions and run-ins with law enforcement.

All 12 jurors must agree that he is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt to be convicted.

U.S. First Lady Jill Biden arrives in federal court on the opening day of the trial of Hunter Biden, son of U.S. President Joe Biden, on gun charges in Wilmington, Delaware, U.S., June 3, 2024. PHOTO: REUTERS

The case is expected to focus on Hunter Biden’s years of crack use and addiction, which he has discussed publicly and which was a prominent part of his 2021 autobiography, “Beautiful Things.” He told Noreika at a hearing last year that he had been sober since mid-2019.

Prosecutors will try to prove Hunter Biden knew he was lying when he checked “no” next to a question on a federal gun purchase form asking if he was an illegal user of a controlled substance.

Prosecutors have revealed in court filings that they may use evidence gleaned from Hunter Biden’s phone and iCloud account, including photos of him smoking crack and messages with drug dealers. They said they may call as a witness his ex-wife Kathleen Buhle, who accused Hunter Biden in their 2017 divorce proceedings of wasting money on drugs, alcohol and prostitutes.

Hunter Biden’s attorneys have said they may try to show he completed a drug rehab program before buying the gun and may have taken his answer on the gun purchase form as true.

A plea deal that would have resolved the gun and tax charges without jail time collapsed last year after Noreika challenged the extent of the immunity it granted Biden. Hunter Biden’s lawyers blamed Republican pressure for the failure of the plea deal.

Read: Biden’s son Hunter faces gun charges

Noreika filed multiple orders over the weekend sought by prosecutors that appeared to undermine Biden’s legal strategy.

The judge said Biden’s legal team could not present expert testimony that people with substance abuse disorders may not consider themselves addicted.

That testimony could have helped Biden show that he didn’t know he was lying on the background check form. The government is required to prove that Biden knowingly lied.

Congressional Republicans have spent years trying in vain to find evidence of a corrupt relationship between Hunter Biden’s foreign business dealings, including work for the Ukrainian energy company Burisma, and his father’s political power.