Joe Biden's Son Hunter Biden Discharged From Navy After Positive Cocaine Test
Ex-reservist "embarrassed that my actions led to my administrative discharge."
— -- Vice President Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden was discharged from the Navy in February after testing positive for cocaine, a person familiar with the case confirmed to ABC News.
The person said Biden had failed a urinalysis test administered in June 2013 before he was discharged from the Navy.
“It was the honor of my life to serve in the U.S .Navy, and I deeply regret and am embarrassed that my actions led to my administrative discharge,” Hunter Biden said in a statement distributed through his lawyer. “I respect the Navy's decision. With the love and support of my family, I'm moving forward.”
The person familiar with the case said he “was treated no different than any other sailor.”
Biden, 44, had needed an age waiver to join the Reserves because of his age as well as a second waiver because of a drug-related incident while a young man.
Separately, a Navy spokesman confirmed that Biden had been discharged from the Navy, but because of Privacy Act restrictions could not detail why he had been discharged.
“Ensign Hunter Biden was selected for commission through the Direct Commission Officer Program in 2012," Cmdr. Ryan Perry said. "In May, 2013 he was assigned to the Navy Public Supports Element East in Norfolk, Virginia. He was discharged from the Navy Reserve in February, 2014. Like other junior officers, the details of Ensign Biden’s discharge are not releasable under the Privacy Act.”
News of Hunter Biden’s discharge was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.