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Hunter Biden gun trial updates: 'Politics never came into play,' juror says after guilty verdict

The president's son was convicted of unlawfully purchasing a firearm.

President Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden has been found guilty on three felony counts related to his purchase of a firearm in 2018 while allegedly addicted to drugs.

The younger Biden, who pleaded not guilty last October after being indicted by special counsel David Weiss, denied the charges. The son of a sitting president had never before faced a criminal trial.

The trial came on the heels of former President Donald Trump's conviction on felony charges related to a hush money payment made to boost his electoral prospects in the 2016 presidential election.


President meets with family, embraces son hours after conviction

President Joe Biden hugged his son and spent several minutes with him on the tarmac at Delaware Air National Guard Base, hours after Hunter Biden was convicted in court.

The president spent several minutes with Hunter Biden, his wife Melissa and their infant son Beau on the tarmac.

The infant hugged his grandfather, who took the child's face in his hands and appeared to give him a kiss.

-ABC News' Molly Nagle


'Too many patterns' of drug use to acquit, juror tells ABC News

A juror in Hunter Biden's gun trial told ABC News that he did not know who Hunter Biden was before the trial started, and that his proximity to power made no difference to the jury.

"Everyone is human and everyone makes mistakes," the juror said. "And those mistakes can have serious consequences -- not just for them, but for everyone else."

The juror -- whose father was killed by gunfire when he was young -- said prosecutors successfully showed that Hunter Biden's drug use around the time of his gun purchase was "too close for me to consider him not a user or addict at that point."

"There's too many patterns that I can see that showed that he was using it when he purchased the gun," the juror said.


'Politics never came into play,' juror tells ABC News

A member of the jury in Hunter Biden's gun case told ABC News that "politics never came into play" in deliberations and that "the verdict absolutely was not politically motivated."

The juror said "it wasn't that hard" to reach a verdict, but said the panel of 12 had to overcome a six-six vote on yesterday afternoon when deliberations began.

When jurors returned this morning and deliberated further, he said they determined that prosecutors had met their burden of proof.

"If you're an addict, you're an addict," he said.

The juror said evidence that placed Hunter Biden at a 7/11 convenience store -- a place where he repeatedly said in his memoir and in text messages that he purchased drugs -- days prior to his gun purchase tipped them over the top.



Officials to discuss security plans should Hunter Biden be jailed

A senior official who has been briefed on the matter tells ABC News that the Secret Service has not started planning for the possibility that Hunter Biden could be sentenced to prison. Those discussions with the Bureau of Prisons will start now.

As the son of a president, Hunter Biden gets Secret Service protection but can opt out of that protection if he wants.

As of now, he continues to have USSS protection and, for as long as his father is president, that would continue, even in prison, unless he waives the privilege.

When sentenced, he could face up to 25 years in prison -- though legal experts believe he will not serve time as a first-time and nonviolent offender.

-ABC News' Josh Margolin


The big question: Will Hunter Biden take the stand this morning?

As the second week of Hunter Biden's gun trial gets underway this morning, defense attorneys will confront their most consequential decision: whether to put their client on the witness stand.

To allow Hunter Biden to testify in his own defense would carry myriad risks, as the president's son would likely face a grueling cross-examination from a prosecution team that has shows itself adept at eliciting testimony supporting their central contention in the case -- that Hunter Biden was addicted to drugs at the time he purchased the handgun at heart of the case.

Jurors witnessed that on Friday, when Naomi Biden, the 30-year-old daughter of Hunter Biden, struggled to explain text messages she sent her father in October 2018 after he had purchased the gun -- in which she seemed to express concern about his addiction, despite testifying moments earlier about how "great" her father seemed at the time.

If Hunter Biden decides not to take the stand, jurors could possibly have the case by the end of the day, after closing arguments and jury instructions.

Court is scheduled to get underway earlier than usual today, at 8:15 a.m. E.T.