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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Hunter Biden arrives at courthouse
Hunter Biden has arrived at the Wilmington courthouse for today's proceedings.
Like previous days, he was accompanied by his wife, Melissa Cohen Biden.
Hallie Biden expected to testify as government looks to rest case
The gun store clerk who sold Hunter Biden the handgun at the center of the government's case returns to the witness stand this morning on Day 4 of the trial as prosecutors look to wrap up their case against the president's son.
Prosecutors said at the end of Wednesday's proceedings that they plan to call six more witnesses -- including Hallie Biden, perhaps their most crucial witness -- before resting their case, which could happen as soon as this afternoon.
Defense counsel have leaned into their claim that Hunter Biden was not actively abusing drugs in October of 2018, the month of his gun purchase, and therefore did not knowingly lie on the federal firearm application form.
Zoe Kestan, one of Hunter Biden's ex-girlfriends, testified Wednesday that she witnessed him smoking crack the month before and the month after his gun purchase, but had "no idea" what he was doing in October.
To fill that gap, prosecutors plan to call Hallie Biden, his brother's widow with whom Hunter Biden was romantically involved.
"The evidence will show that during those 11 days, the defendant continued to use drugs and to talk about his drug use with Hallie," prosecutor Derek Hines said.
Prosecution could rest its case as early as Thursday
Under cross-examination by defense attorney Abbe Lowell, gun store clerk Gordon Cleveland testified about the sequence of events on Oct. 12, 2018, when he sold Hunter Biden the handgun at the center of the case -- with Cleveland and Lowell at times squabbling over details as granular as the direction of Hunter Biden's vehicle when he drove into the store's parking lot.
Cleveland will return to the stand Thursday morning when proceedings continue.
Prosecutor Derek Hines told the judge before court concluded for the day that he anticipated resting his case as soon as the end of the day on Thursday. The government has six brief witnesses remaining, he said.
Lowell said that if the government rests its case by the end of the day Thursday, he would be prepared to call his first witness on Friday morning.
Clerk says Hunter Biden showed no confusion over drug question
Gun store clerk Gordon Cleveland testified that he watched from "about two feet" away as Hunter Biden, in the course of purchasing a handgun in 2018, filled out Form 4473 and checked the box asking applicants whether they were active drug users.
After Hunter Biden selected the Colt Cobra for purchase, Cleveland said he asked him to fill out Form 4473, which he told him was required for "every gun purchase." Cleveland testified that he instructed Hunter Biden to write in his personal information and answer the questions below, "and to take your time answering them," he said.
Cleveland testified that he watched as Hunter Biden answered several questions on the form before he approached question 11.E., which asked about drug use.
"You saw him strike that box with an 'X'?" prosecutor Derek Hines asked.
"Yes," Cleveland said.
"He didn't seem to express any confusion by that question?" Hines asked.
"No," Cleveland said.
Prosecutors introduce infamous laptop as evidence
Prosecutors have introduced Hunter Biden's infamous laptop as evidence while questioning FBI agent Erika Jensen, their first witness.
Prosecutors asked Jensen about email messages found on the laptop and in Hunter Biden's iCloud account that appear to be about his drug use in 2018.
The government had said in pretrial court filings that it was planning to introduce materials on the laptop as evidence in the case.
The laptop has become a symbol of the legal and political controversy surrounding the president's son in recent years. Attorneys for Hunter Biden had previously attempted to preclude the laptop as evidence in the trial, arguing that they have "numerous reasons to believe the data had been altered and compromised before investigators obtained the electronic material."
But special counsel David Weiss argued in court filings that attorneys for Hunter Biden had not "provided any evidence or information that shows that his laptop contains false information," and the judge agreed to admit it as evidence.
Data from the laptop was purportedly obtained and later disseminated in 2019 by a Wilmington, Delaware, computer repairman after the laptop had been dropped off at his shop for repair.
With that context in mind, prosecutors did not rely on the laptop on its own; investigators said they cross-referenced every email, WhatsApp message, iMessage, and text message with Apple Inc. to establish the credibility of the data.
"Ultimately, in examining that laptop, were investigators able to confirm that it was Hunter Biden's laptop?" prosecutor Derek Hines asked Jensen.
"Yes," Jensen said.
"How?" Hines asked.
"Among other things, there was a serial number that's on the back of this laptop that matches the Apple subpoena records that they obtained in 2019, so it matches the registration of this particular device to the iCloud account at a particular date," Jensen said.
"So from the data from the laptop and the hard drive, did you -- what did you do next, or what did the FBI do next when assessing the addiction evidence?" Hines asked.
"So from the data that was extracted from both the iCloud back ups and this -- the laptop, investigators were able to go through largely WhatsApp messages, iMessages, and text messages, and found evidence of addiction within the messages," Jensen said.
Prosecutors also showed jurors an invoice for $85 from the computer repair shop where Hunter Biden dropped off the laptop for repair, which had been sent to an email address belonging to Hunter Biden.
"You said Apple Inc. provided that ... from the iCloud?" Hines asked.
"Yes," Jensen said.