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Hunter Biden to be sentenced on gun crime a week after Election Day

By Lucien Bruggeman, ABC News Aug 3, 2024 | 11:49 AM
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

(WILMINGTON, Del.) — Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, will face sentencing for his three-count felony conviction on Nov. 13, just one week after the presidential election.

Biden was found guilty in June by a Delaware jury of violating the law when he obtained a firearm in 2018, at a time when he was addicted to drugs. For the three felony convictions, Hunter Biden could face up to 25 years in prison — though legal experts believe he will not serve time as a first-time and nonviolent offender.

Hunter Biden had sought a new trial in the case, saying his “convictions should be vacated” because trial commenced before a circuit court formally issued a mandate denying one of his many pretrial appeals. But last month, his attorneys withdrew their bid for a new trial, conceding in court papers that the motion misunderstood a technicality in the district court’s capacity to carry out a trial.

He had tried several times to get the federal charges tossed before the trial began, but to no avail.

President Joe Biden has repeatedly pledged to not pardon his son, including in an interview with “World News Tonight” anchor David Muir.

While the trial was still ongoing, Biden was asked if he would respect the outcome, to which he responded, “Yes,” and if he would rule out a pardon for Hunter Biden. Again, he responded, simply, “Yes.”

Hunter Biden faces a separate criminal trial in September on federal tax charges. He has pleaded not guilty.

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