Hunter Biden’s Trial Begins: 5 Simple Facts
Hunter Biden is having a very important trial in court right now. He is the son of the President of the United States, Joe Biden. The trial is about a gun crime that Hunter is accused of doing a few years ago. He is charged with lying on some forms when he bought a gun in 2018. Prosecutors say Hunter was addicted to drugs at that time and should not have bought the gun. The trial just started this week and many people are paying close attention to it. Here are 5 simple facts to know about this big trial.
1. Why is Hunter Biden on Trial?
Hunter Biden is going through a trial in court. He is the son of President Joe Biden. The trial is about a gun crime. Hunter is accused of lying when he bought a gun a few years ago.
The charges say that in 2018, Hunter bought a gun called a Colt Cobra revolver. When he filled out the paperwork to buy the gun, he said he was not addicted to any drugs. But prosecutors claim he was addicted to drugs at that time.
If found guilty, Hunter could get up to 25 years in prison. He is also facing fines of up to $250,000. The trial just started this week with the selection of the jury.
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2. Hunter’s Defense is About His Drug Addiction
Hunter’s legal team plans to argue that he was so addicted to drugs when he bought the gun, that he may not have intended to lie on the forms. Their main defense is expected to be that Hunter was in denial about his drug addiction at that time.
Some legal experts find this defense strategy confusing and “crazy.” Hunter himself wrote a book detailing his struggles with drug addiction during that period of his life. So in a way, he has provided evidence against himself through his own admissions in the book.
3. Biden Family Members Are Present
While President Joe Biden has not attended the trial so far, some of Hunter’s other family members have been there to support him. His wife Melissa was by his side on the first day. The President’s daughter Ashley was also present, along with the First Lady, Jill Biden.
It remains to be seen if President Biden will make an appearance at his son’s trial in the coming days or weeks. The high-profile case is drawing a lot of national attention.
4. Some Evidence is Not Allowed
The judge has ruled that prosecutors cannot bring up certain personal matters about Hunter Biden’s life as evidence in this particular trial. This includes references to his discharge from the Navy, as well as the child support case involving a child he had out of wedlock in Arkansas.
However, parts of Hunter’s own memoir where he discusses his drug addiction can be used as evidence. The prosecution is also allowed to use select information from Hunter’s infamous leaked laptop from 2020, but his legal team can question the authenticity of that evidence.
5. This is Not Hunter’s Only Legal Case
In addition to the gun crime charges in this trial, Hunter Biden is facing separate federal tax charges in California later this month. Prosecutors allege that from 2017 to 2020, Hunter engaged in tax evasion and failed to pay income taxes, while also filing false tax reports.
Hunter has pleaded not guilty in the tax case as well. His trial on those charges in Los Angeles is scheduled to begin on June 20th, just a couple weeks after the start of his trial in Delaware this week.
So in summary, while Hunter Biden is going through a high-profile trial over alleged lies on a gun purchase form, related to his struggles with drug addiction at the time, this case is just one part of his mounting legal troubles on multiple fronts. His family is standing by his side as the nation closely watches the unfolding court proceedings.
