Hunter Biden’s sister-in-law testified on Thursday that she found his gun and threw it away out of fear of his spiraling addiction.
This testimony could bolster prosecutors’ case that President Joe Biden’s son broke a law barring illegal drug users from owning firearms. Jurors in the first criminal trial of a U.S. president’s child watched surveillance footage of Hallie Biden tossing Hunter Biden’s gun in a supermarket trash can and read texts where she expressed concern for his life.
“Check yourself into a local rehab, Hunter. This has all got to stop,” Hallie Biden wrote in an October 2018 text message shortly after Hunter Biden bought the gun. Hunter Biden has pleaded not guilty to three felony charges. These charges accuse him of illegally failing to disclose his use of illegal drugs when he bought the Colt Cobra revolver and of illegally possessing the weapon for 11 days before Hallie Biden took it.
The trial in Wilmington, Delaware, follows another historic first—last week’s criminal conviction of Donald Trump, the first U.S. president found guilty of a felony. Trump, the Republican challenger to Joe Biden in the upcoming election, and some Republican allies in Congress have alleged that the case and three other ongoing prosecutions are politically motivated attempts to prevent him from regaining power. Congressional Democrats have pointed to cases like Hunter Biden’s prosecution as evidence that Joe Biden is not using the justice system for political or personal ends.
Joe Biden told ABC News on Thursday that he would not pardon his son if convicted. When asked if he would accept the trial outcome and rule out a pardon, Biden responded, “yes.”
The Delaware jury has heard testimony this week from witnesses, including Hunter Biden’s ex-wife and a former girlfriend, about his past prolific drug use, which he has publicly acknowledged. Prosecutors did not wrap up their case on Thursday and plan to call two witnesses on Friday. Hunter Biden’s lawyer said he could finish his case by the end of Monday.
Hallie Biden provided crucial details about Hunter Biden’s behavior when he possessed the gun. She testified that she often cleaned out Hunter Biden’s truck, searching for drugs to help him get his life in order. She recounted finding drug paraphernalia and the gun during one of those searches and feared that Hunter Biden or her children would find the gun and hurt themselves. “I panicked and wanted to get rid of it,” said Hallie Biden, who began a romantic relationship with Hunter Biden after his brother’s death in late 2015 or early 2016. She said Hunter Biden introduced her to crack, and she became addicted until she got clean in August 2018.
During cross-examination, Hallie Biden stated that she had not seen Hunter Biden in the weeks around the gun purchase and did not see him use drugs on the day she took his revolver. She completed her testimony on Thursday afternoon. Hunter Biden told the judge at a 2023 hearing that he had been sober since 2019.
Hunter Biden and his attorneys have not decided if he will testify in his own defense. If convicted on all charges, he faces up to 25 years in prison, although defendants generally receive shorter sentences, according to the U.S. Justice Department.
