After only a few hours of deliberation, a Delaware jury found Hunter Biden guilty on all three charges relating to firearms.
Hunter’s historic verdict reflects his high-stakes gamble of going to trial rather than accepting a revised deal offered in the summer of 2023.
Court documents state that Hunter could face up to 25 years in prison and fines of $750,000.
In the federal system, there is usually a delay of two to three months between conviction and sentencing. NBC News reported, “We don’t yet know what the sentencing guideline would be if he is convicted on all charges, but one legal expert said that they would likely specify around a 12-month prison sentence.”
Maryellen Noreika was the judge in Hunter’s gun trial. She recently handed down a one-year prison sentence to a defendant who had been charged with a similar firearm case. Noreika’s sentence was one year, not six months as the defense had requested.
The government has charged Hunter with making a false statement during the purchase of firearms, possessing a firearm while being addicted to or an illegal user of controlled substances, and making a false statement regarding information that a federally licensed firearms dealer must keep.
Hunter purchased the firearm and disposed of it in a trash can near a school in 2018 after using crack, according to photos on his laptop. Reports suggest that the Secret Service intervened during that investigation.
Naomi Biden Neal was the only witness called by the defense. The prosecution had ten witnesses on the stand. Court reporters indicated that her testimony seemed to have backfired when it appeared to make Hunter seem “erratic” in the eyes of the jury.
Legal experts warned that Hunter’s defense likely hoped for jury nullification. Jury nullification occurs when jurors ignore their oath and find a defendant innocent despite the evidence proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Hunter was portrayed by the defense as a victim of his drug use. Abbe Lowell, a defense attorney, argued that prosecutors had to prove Hunter “knowingly” engaged in gun crimes.
Hunter chose to own an illegal firearm, and we’re here because he lied.
Leo Wise, the prosecutor, gestured at the Biden family as they watched the closing arguments in the courtroom on Monday. “People in the gallery aren’t evidence.”
Hunter refused to accept the plea bargain offered by prosecutors in 2023 after the negotiations broke down under judicial scrutiny.
Hunter was given the choice to accept a “sweetheart” deal in which he could plead guilty to not paying taxes in 2017 or 2018 on income exceeding $1.5 million and receive probation instead of jail time. Hunter was also granted immunity from future charges by Special Counsel David Weiss, who also devised an alternative diversion agreement. This included a provision that could potentially erase a gun offense from his criminal record.
Weiss indicted Hunter for tax violations in California. The trial will take place in September.
United States v. Hunter Biden is the case. The United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit issued a ruling on 24-1703 (the case).
