Hunter Biden gun trial: '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.
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Trial followed dramatic unraveling of plea deal
In July 2023, a plea deal struck between Hunter Biden and prosecutors that could have precluded this week's trial dramatically fell apart amid the judge's concerns over the terms of the agreement.
For the better part of three hours, U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika scrutinized nearly every facet of the plea deal. Noreika acknowledged that her probing threw "a little bit of a curveball" into the proceeding.
Hunter Biden had originally agreed to a pretrial diversion on the gun charges, with the charges being dropped if he adhered to certain terms. He had also agreed to acknowledge his failure to pay taxes on income he received in 2017 and 2018. In exchange, prosecutors would have recommended probation on those charges.
Democrats had hailed the deal as a sign of accountability while Republicans panned the details as a "sweetheart deal."
Hunter Biden leaves court with wife, first lady
Hunter Biden appeared stunned when the verdict was read, showing absolutely no reaction when the first "guilty" was announced.
Then, he nodded "yes" as the word guilty was read for a second time. He nodded once more when the third one was read.
Hunter Biden then immediately he turned to those around him. He patted his attorney Abbe Lowell on the back and hugged one of his paralegals, and when the jury left, he smiled as he hugged his lawyer again.
He then turned to his family, moving into the gallery where he hugged his wife and gave her a kiss.
After the reading of the verdict, Hunter Biden left court holding hands with his stepmother, first lady Jill Biden, and his wife, Melissa Cohen Biden.
His aunt and uncle, Valerie Biden and James Biden, were also at the courthouse on Tuesday.
Hunter Biden unlikely to serve time, expert says
Hunter Biden could face up to 25 years in prison, though legal experts believe he would not serve time as a first-time and nonviolent offender.
ABC News chief legal affairs anchor Dan Abrams said that while it's unlikely he will serve time, "the judge will have a lot of discretion."
"This is technically a very serious crime with a very serious potential sentence," Abrams said.
President Joe Biden told ABC News last week that he would not pardon his son. But the president also has the option to commute the sentence, Abrams noted.
In September 2023, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre ruled out a commutation of any sentence.
President Biden said he wouldn't pardon son
President Joe Biden said he would not pardon his son Hunter Biden during an exclusive interview with ABC News anchor David Muir last week.
Muir asked President Biden on Thursday if he would accept the outcome of his son's trial, to which the president said, "Yes."
The president also said "yes" when asked by Muir if he would rule out a pardon for Hunter Biden.
Jury begins deliberations
The jury has begun deliberations on the three felony counts Hunter Biden faces in his federal gun case.
Prior to the jury getting the case, the government rebutted defense attorney Abbe Lowell's closing argument by asserting again that Hunter Biden was a drug addict when he bought the gun at the center of the case and that he knew it -- beyond a reasonable doubt.
There are "seven ways to Sunday" to show Hunter Biden was an addict and it was "preposterous" that he -- a "Yale-educated lawyer" -- didn't know he was buying a gun while knowingly addicted, prosecutor Derek Hines argued.
Hines rebutted Lowell's characterization of the government's treatment of Hunter Biden's daughter Naomi Biden as "cruel."
Naomi Biden was "completely uncomfortable" because "she couldn't vouch for the defendant's sobriety," Hines argued.
Hines closed by saying that if the jury doesn't determine Hunter Biden is a crack addict based on the evidence in the case, "then no one is a crack addict of unlawful use."
Judge Maryellen Noreika then delivered the final portion of her instructions and sent jurors to begin their deliberations.
The judge indicated that she would not keep jurors past 4:30 or 4:45 p.m. ET today.