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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3 counts are for gun possession, false statements

The three felony counts on which Hunter Biden was convicted -- all related to his purchase of a firearm in 2018 while allegedly addicted to drugs -- are as follows:

Count 1: False statement in purchase of a firearm.

Count 2: False statement related to information required to be kept by federal firearms licensed dealer.

Count 3: Possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.


'Jill and I will always be there for Hunter,' President Biden says

President Joe Biden said in a statement after the verdict, "As I said last week, I am the President, but I am also a Dad. Jill and I love our son, and we are so proud of the man he is today."

"So many families who have had loved ones battle addiction understand the feeling of pride seeing someone you love come out the other side and be so strong and resilient in recovery," he said.

"As I also said last week, I will accept the outcome of this case and will continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal," the president said. "Jill and I will always be there for Hunter and the rest of our family with our love and support. Nothing will ever change that."


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.


Many prospective jurors know of Hunter Biden's travails

Judge Maryellen Noreika has so far quizzed more than 50 Delaware residents about their fitness to serve as jurors in the first trial of a sitting president's son. And being Delaware -- a small state that Joe Biden represented in the Senate for more than three decades -- nearly all of them had some level of familiarity with Hunter Biden's legal travails.

"I live in Delaware," one prospective juror said. "You can't swing a cat without hearing something."

"Delaware is a small place," another said. "So you hear stuff."

Several jurors said they had heard or read about this trial specifically. Most had only a cursory understanding of the case, but others expressed a detailed accounting of the charges. A few jurors mentioned the ill-fated plea deal that Hunter Biden initially struck with prosecutors last summer.

"At one time there was a deal, and then there wasn't," one man said.

One woman had even read Hunter Biden's memoir, "Beautiful Things," which prosecutors plan to use to help prove their case. She was excused by the judge.

President Joe Biden has emerged repeatedly in questioning, with prospective jurors expressing both positive and negative feelings on his presidency. One woman said she believed that Hunter Biden was facing charges largely because his father is the president.

"I think it was a very strong factor," she said.

Several others have been dismissed for harboring negative views toward the Bidens. Asked for his opinion about the president, one man said, "Not a good one." Another man said, "Negative toward the defendant." Both were excused.

The jury questionnaire also includes several questions about drug and alcohol addiction -- an affliction that many prospective jurors said has personally affected them.

One woman held back tears as she described how her best friend had died of a heroine overdose. Another man said his daughter is a recovering addict.

"Everybody needs a second chance," he said.

Judge Noreika has been pressing ahead, intent on getting a jury seated as soon as possible -- perhaps even by the end of the day.

In addition first lady Jill Biden and Hunter Biden's wife Melissa, his half-sister Ashley Biden attended court during the morning session, and his confidant and financier Kevin Morris is also in attendance.