A federal court jury in Wilmington, Delaware found Hunter Biden, American President Joe Biden’s son, guilty of three felony counts related to a handgun purchase in 2018. The case was brought over Hunter Biden lying on a federal firearms application about his addiction to crack cocaine, which is a standard background check procedure required in firearms purchases. The three felonies he has been convicted in include lying to a federally licensed gun dealer, making a false claim on a federal firearms application and possessing an illegally obtained gun for 11 days.
Hunter Biden, 54, faces up to 25 years in prison and a $750,000 fine, although the full sentence is unlikely to be handed out since the younger Biden is a non-violent, first-time offender. The sentencing is scheduled to take place by October at the very latest, right before a crucial election for President Joe Biden, and could be a massive blow in the President’s contest against Donald Trump.
Many legal experts have weighed in and suggested that most people would not be charged with the same felony unless there was an underlying crime associated with lying on a federal firearms application.
Hunter Biden is also due to face another trial in California in September over his failure to file taxes while he was addicted to crack cocaine and alcohol. He could face 17 years in prison if convicted over tax evasion charges.
The firearms case was brought by special counsel David C. Weiss, and is widely considered the less serious of the two federal indictments facing the President’s son.
The conviction on June 11 does however complicate the trial over Mr. Biden’s failure to file taxes, as sentencing rules require previous convictions to be considered.
In a statement, the President said that “I am the president, but I am also a dad… I will accept the outcome of this case and will continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal. 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.”