Hunter Biden trial on federal gun charges begins Monday
- President’s son accused of lying about his drug addiction on a federal gun form
- Trial begins nearly a year after a plea agreement fell apart
- Prosecutor says Justice Dept. never interfered in his investigation
- President’s son accused of lying about his drug addiction on a federal gun form
- Trial begins nearly a year after a plea agreement fell apart
- Prosecutor says Justice Dept. never interfered in his investigation
(NewsNation) — Jury selection is scheduled to begin Monday in federal court in Wilmington, Del. in the federal gun trial of Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden.
The younger Biden is accused of lying on a federal form when he bought a .38-caliber Colt Cobra Special in 2018. Biden falsely said he was not a drug user, despite being addicted to cocaine at the time.
“I don’t think he’s going to go to prison any more than I think that Trump is going to prison in his New York case,” said former assistant U.S. Attorney David Katz.
“This was all a long time ago. It was non-violent. The gun was never used in any violent or improper way. It was thrown out less than two weeks later (after purchase),” Katz told “NewsNation.”
The trial begins nearly one year after U.S. District Court Judge Maryellen Noreika raised concerns about a plea agreement that would have spared Hunter Biden any prison time.
Katz believes Hunter Biden will be found guilty, since the facts of the course aren’t in dispute but also predicts the defense will argue about the term ‘addict.’
“He’ll argue that it’s too vague, it’s speculative. People don’t define themselves as ‘addicts.’’
While the facts may be indisputable, Hunter Biden’s attorney has said we can’t ignore the politics of the case.
“He (Hunter Biden) is being punished for the perceived sins of his father — the sin of opposing Mr. Trump’s election to the president,” according to court papers filed by Lowell, who also has represented Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, the former president’s daughter and son-in-law.
Lead prosecutor David Weiss has said “political considerations” played no part in the investigation. He told lawmakers behind closed doors last year that that no one at the Justice Department prevented him from pursuing charges.
Even with a guilty verdict, Katz says it’s unlikely that Hunter Biden will face any prison time because he’s a first-time offender, not because he’s the son of a sitting president.
Katz also says he wouldn’t be surprised to see Joe Biden, if reelected, pardoning his son or commuting his sentence. Katz says Donald Trump would undoubtedly do the same if one of his sons was in this position.
Hunter Biden’s legal troubles will head west in September. He’ll face a trail in Los Angeles on charges he failed to pay about $1.4 million in federal incomes taxes.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
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