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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Government to rest case Friday, defense might rest Monday

The day's final witness was Ed Banner, the 80-year-old Navy veteran who recovered Hunter Biden's firearm from the trash receptacle outside a supermarket after Hunter Biden's then-girlfriend Hallie Biden had disposed of it there.

Banner described finding the firearm and other items as he was rummaging for recyclables that he would often drive to New York to return for money.

Defense attorney Abbe Lowell had previously suggested that cocaine residue discovered on a leather pouch that held the gun could have been tampered with between the time the firearm was discarded on Oct. 23, 2018, and when it was tested in a lab in late 2023.

"This may sound like an unusual question, but does anyone in your household use cocaine?" Derek Hines asked Banner.

"No," Banner said, appearing somewhat surprised by the question.

Banner also denied wrapping the firearm in a sock, as a Delaware state trooper suggested in earlier testimony.

"I don't know nothin' about no sock," Banner said.

Prosecutors said before court concluded that they have two witnesses left -- a DEA drug specialist and an FBI chemist -- and that they intend to rest their case on Friday morning.

Defense counsel said they would call two or three witnesses and would likely rest their case by the end of the day on Monday.

As Lowell previously suggested, he may call James Biden, the president's brother, and Naomi Biden, the president's eldest granddaughter.

He also said that no decision has yet been made on whether Hunter Biden will testify in his own defense.

Court then was recessed for the day.


Trooper says gun was found by man rummaging through trash

Former Delaware State Police lieutenant Millard Greer testified that Hunter Biden's gun was placed in a sock by an elderly man who found the weapon in the trash outside a supermarket after Hallie Biden discarded it.

Greer said he reviewed surveillance footage, interviewed witnesses, and ultimately retrieved the weapon from Edward Banner, who was known to "rummage through trash."

When Greer approached Banner and asked him if someone left "something that didn't belong" in the trash outside the supermarket, Banner replied, "Oh yes, they did," Greer testified.

At Banner's home, he pulled out the firearm from a sock along with a leather pouch and other items, and handed them to Greer, the former trooper said.

On cross-examination, defense attorney Abbe Lowell pressed Greer about the chain of custody of the weapon, including questions about it being placed in an evidence locker.

Greer also testified that Hunter Biden chose not to press charges against Hallie Biden and Banner after the gun was retrieved.


State trooper describes investigating 'stolen gun'

Delaware state trooper Joshua Marley, testifying for the prosecution, described his role in investigating a report of a "stolen gun" on Oct. 23, 2018.

He said that at the time that he believed Hunter Biden "was the victim of the crime."

The gun turned out to have been discarded by Hallie Biden after she discovered it in her then-boyfriend Hunter Biden's car.

Marley spent only a short time on the stand before stepping down.

The government has four witnesses left before resting its case, meaning they will likely continue into Friday morning.


Prosecution calls state police officer to the stand

Defense attorney Abbe Lowell continued to probe Hallie Biden's memory of the period in 2018 when she discovered the gun purchased by then-boyfriend Hunter Biden, at one point remarking that there are "some things you remember and other things you don't."

She testified that for most of the month of October 2018 she did not see Hunter Biden abusing alcohol or drugs.

She also said that in the period after she disposed of the gun and filed a police report, her relationship with Hunter was "more tense."

When her testimony concluded, she stepped off the stand.

The government next called Delaware State Police officer Joshua Marley as its next witness.


Jury of 6 men, 6 woman will hear openings Tuesday

A jury of six men and six women is scheduled to hear opening statements Tuesday in Hunter Biden's federal gun trial.

An additional four women were chosen as the alternate jurors.

The jurors include a Secret Service retiree, a man whose father was killed by a gun, and a number of jurors whose family and friends have suffered from addiction -- a central theme in the case against Hunter Biden.

Juror No. 1 is a woman who recently heard about Hunter Biden's case on the evening news. Said said her sister is also an addict, but is "currently clean."

Juror No. 2 is a woman who worked for the Secret Service for nearly 25 years and is now retired. Her husband was a uniformed officer in Washington, D.C.

Juror No. 3 is woman who gets her news from YouTube. When asked what she has heard about the case, she said that it involves guns and drugs.

Juror No. 4 is a woman who said she feels people who smoke weed "should not be allowed" to own a gun, but said she could set that aside.

Juror No. 5 is a currently unemployed man who previously received a DUI for which he pleaded guilty.

Juror No. 6 is a man who said he previously knew about the case. He currently owns three pistols and said, "I believe the Second Amendment is very important."

Juror No. 7 is a man whose father owned a firearm. He said he knows "some" gun laws.

Juror No. 8 is a man whose father was killed by a gun in 2004. He has a brother who was arrested for drug possession and was sentenced to prison.

Juror No. 9 is a woman whose home was burglarized years ago. She purchased a gun and has had it for over 20 years.

Juror No. 10 is a man whose brother and brother-in-law both suffered from alcoholism and are now both deceased. His niece and nephew both own guns.

Juror No. 11 is a woman whose family hunts and has hunting rifles. She said her "childhood best friend" passed away from a drug overdose.

Juror No. 12 is a man whose older brother is an addict who has been to rehab multiple times for PCP and heroin. He said the brother had a gun but he was not sure when.