Overshadowed by the ouster of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to federal gun charges, so what’s next for the beleaguered presidential son?
Almost under the radar because of the brouhaha in The House, Hunter appeared in front of a federal judge in Wilmington on Tuesday, his second criminal court hearing this year, as prosecutors pursue firearms and potential tax charges against President Joe Biden’s son.
Through his attorney, Hunter Biden, 53, pleaded not guilty to three federal firearms felonies in front of Magistrate Judge Christopher J. Burke inside Wilmington’s federal courthouse on King Street downtown.
The not-guilty plea put the case on course for a potential criminal trial as his father runs for a second term as president and federal prosecutors also pursue criminal charges against the frontrunner Republican challenger, former President Donald Trump. It also comes as congressional Republicans seek to tie Hunter Biden’s finances and legal troubles to his father in the impeachment hearing of Joe Biden.
The charges stem from Hunter Biden’s purchase of a .38-caliber revolver at a local gun shop in 2018.
As part of that purchase, he indicated on a federal form that he was not a drug user. Prosecutors contend that during that time, he purchased and used crack cocaine regularly, and Hunter Biden himself has written about his struggles with addiction and stints in rehab around that time.
What Happens Next?
After Hunter Biden’s not-guilty plea, Lowell, his attorney, indicated he intends to file multiple motions to dismiss the case and call for an evidentiary hearing tied to that effort.
One of those motions will focus on the collapsed agreement prosecutors previously struck with Hunter Biden that would have seen the government not prosecute the gun charges in exchange for the president’s son agreeing to abstain from drug use for two years and never again owning a firearm.
Lowell added that another basis will center on the constitutionality of the gun charges. The specific law that Hunter Biden is charged with violating is primarily used to prevent felons from possessing a firearm but also contains provisions prohibiting gun possession for other reasons. The law is being challenged by multiple lawsuits following the 2022 Supreme Court decision called New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, which overturned a New York law that had required people to have a “proper cause” to have a firearm. The ruling set a new standard for lower courts to use when reviewing gun laws.
Since then, federal district courts and appeals courts have issued rulings limiting the government’s ability to restrict gun ownership for people who use drugs in multiple cases.
The Judge gave Hunter’s legal team 30 days to file any such motion. No trial date has been set. The president’s son was released on conditions that he not use drugs or alcohol or possess a weapon and submit to screenings.