Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to three gun charges in federal court. The president's son, who arrived at the court in Delaware around 10 a.m. accompanied by his lawyer, Abbe Lowell, was denied his request to appear via videocall and was required to attend the hearing in person.
Hunter Biden's defense assured that he will use the 30 days that the judge has granted him to present a motion to dismiss the charges. He was released under two conditions: that he not consume any substance, including alcohol, nor carry or use a firearm. Lowell accused the MAGA movement of orchestrating the accusation against his client:
These charges are the result of political pressure from President Trump and his MAGA allies to force the Justice Department to ignore the law and deviate from its policies in cases like this one. The only substantive and relevant changes since July, when the US Attorney decided against pursuing these exact charges against Mr. Biden, has been various court rulings undermining the constitutionality of the law at issue here and a coordinated, partisan attack on our system of justice by right-wing Republicans.
The appearance lasted approximately 40 minutes. Within 30 minutes of the start, Hunter had already pleaded not guilty to all three counts he was charged with: possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user or addict of a controlled substance, making a false statement in the purchase of a firearm and making a false statement to the gun store where a firearm was purchased.
He is being prosecuted because he lied about his drug use when filling out the legal form when he purchased a 38-caliber Colt Cobra pistol.
Maximum of 25 years in prison
In mid-September, a formal accusation was presented against Hunter Biden in the same court where Tuesday's hearing was held. In total, President Joe Biden's son could be sentenced to up to 25 years in prison: five for one of the charges and 10 for each of the other two.
Abbe Lowell already announced that his client would plead not guilty to the charges he faces. The trial would be held in 2024, the year in which Joe Biden aspires to be re-elected as president.
