WASHINGTON. Hunter Biden, 54, son of American President Joe was found guilty of all three counts involving the purchase, use and possession for eleven days of a Colt revolver in 2018 when he was a drug addict. He was accused of having made false declarations, i.e. that he was no longer addicted to cocaine, when he had requested the purchase of a weapon.
This was established by a jury in a federal court in Delaware who reached the verdict after 3 hours of deliberation. The judge said that the sentence “as a rule will arrive within 120 days”. In any case, a date has not yet been set. Hunter and wife Melissa returned to the courtroom, hand in hand, minutes before the verdict was announced, a sign that the jury had reached its conclusion.
Hunter bought a .38-caliber Colt in October 2018. During the week of the trial, jurors heard stories from witnesses about Hunter’s efforts to stay sober, but also saw evidence that the president’s son had bought and used drugs in the weeks before purchasing a gun at a store near Wilmington.
The youngest of the president’s sons faces 25 years in prison, although the sentence is likely to be only a portion of that.
The presiding judge is Trump appointee Maryellen Noreika, a former civil lawyer with a background and studies in biology. Despite the nomination by the former president, her name had been suggested by two Democratic senators. Noreika donated to both parties’ campaigns and had never worked on criminal cases or presided over a courtroom before becoming a federal judge. According to her, when she reported to the New York Times, she was registered between 2000 and 2020 on the electoral roll as a Democrat. She now she instead she has no affiliation.
The sentence and the prospect of imprisonment cast a shadow over Joe Biden’s run. Among other things, the trial in Delaware has brought to light details about the family’s life which are destined to increase when a second trial for Hunter opens in September, the one for tax evasion which will be held in September. In that case, the crazy expenses and luxury to which the scion had dedicated himself will end up under the microscope.
The president said in recent days that he would not pardon his son, releasing a statement in which he said he was “so proud of the man” who is now Hunter.
Hunter Biden was indicted last year after a deal in which he pleaded guilty to a pair of minor tax offenses in exchange for not prosecuting the gun possession case. However, the agreement, when it seemed to have been reached, was then torn up by the judge after the prosecutor and defense lawyers were unable to find a compromise on the extension of immunity on future indictments.
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