WILMINGTON, DEL.—President Joe Biden’s only surviving son, Hunter Biden, was found guilty of all three felony charges involving the purchase of a Colt revolver in 2018 while he was abusing crack cocaine and alcohol.
Biden could now face up to 25 years in prison for all three charges though, as a first offender, prison time could be unlikely.
After three hours of deliberation, a federal jury found Biden guilty of two counts of making false statements about his drug use on a federal form he was required to fill out when purchasing the weapon and another count of unlawfully possessing a firearm by a drug user or addict. The actions came at a difficult time in his life when he was in mourning after his brother, Beau’s, death in 2015, he said.
During the week-long trial, Biden’s attorneys argued that he had underwent a rehabilitation program at the time and no longer considered himself to be using, or addicted, to drugs at the time of filling out the form.
However, text messages retrieved via subpoena and sent by Biden just days after purchasing the firearm talk about using drugs, buying drugs, and meeting with drug dealers.
Ten witnesses were also called to the stand, including Biden’s ex-wife Kathleen Buhle, an ex-girlfriend Zoe Kestan, and Hallie Biden – Beau’s widow who spoke about her abusing crack cocaine with Hunter Biden in, what she called, an “embarrassing” moment of her life.
The firearm was found discarded in a trash can in front of a Wilmington grocery store 11 days later – thrown away by Hallie Biden, whom Hunter had grown romantically involved with following his brother’s death.
President Joe Biden told reporters Tuesday that he would not pardon his son stating: “I will accept the outcome of this case and will continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal.”
Hunter Biden’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, said in a statement that they would continue “to vigorously pursue all the legal challenges available to Hunter,” which likely means an appeal though nothing official as of yet.
The President’s son also faces federal tax involved charges scheduled to go to trial this September in California. These charges carry a maximum prison sentence of 17 years if found guilty.
