Hunter Biden Faces Trial for Federal Gun Charges

Hunter Biden appeared in court for a pretrial hearing on federal gun charges, which he has pleaded not guilty to. The charges stem from an incident in 2018 in which Biden allegedly made false statements when purchasing a firearm and possessed it while being an unlawful drug user.

Hunter Biden arrived at a Delaware court on Friday for a pretrial hearing on federal gun charges, following multiple failed attempts by the president's son to have the charges against him dismissed.

Biden pleaded not guilty to the charges in the U.S. District Court for Delaware. Special Counsel David Weiss has charged him with making a false statement in the purchase of a firearm, making a false statement related to information required to be kept by a licensed firearm dealer, and one count of possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.

Judge Maryellen Noreika will preside over the trial, which is set to begin on June 3. The maximum prison time for the charges combined could reach 25 years, with each count carrying a potential fine of $250,000 and three years of supervised release.

The indictment alleges that Biden purchased a Coldt Cobra revolver on Oct. 12, 2018, and made a false written statement to the firearm dealer, claiming he was not an unlawful user or addicted to controlled substances when he knew this to be untrue.

The indictment also charges Biden with possessing the firearm for nearly a week, despite being addicted to narcotics at the time. The firearm was allegedly transported in interstate commerce.

Special Counsel Weiss has also brought federal tax charges against Hunter Biden in California, alleging a "four-year scheme" in which Biden failed to pay his federal income taxes from 2017 to 2020, resulting in $1.4 million in owed taxes.

Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to the tax charges in April 2023. A pretrial hearing was held in California on Wednesday, and the criminal trial has been rescheduled from June 20 to September 5.

Hallie Biden, the widow of President Biden's late son, Beau, may be required to testify during Hunter Biden's trial. In 2018, a police report indicated that Hallie Biden threw a gun owned by Hunter into a dumpster behind a market near a school.

The gun charges against Hunter Biden have drawn scrutiny due to his father's position as president. The House GOP has alleged that Hunter Biden lied under oath during a congressional deposition related to his business dealings.

The outcome of the trial and the tax charges could have significant implications for both Hunter Biden and the Biden administration.