Opening statements in Hunter Biden’s felony gun trial began Tuesday morning, kicking off the presentation of evidence in the historic case.
Hunter Biden faces three felonies over whether he lied on a federal gun form in 2018 that asked if he was addicted to drugs. It is the first criminal case against the child of a sitting president in U.S. history.
On Monday, a jury of 12 was seated in the federal courthouse in Wilmington. First Lady Jill Biden, Hunter Biden's wife Melissa Cohen Biden and his sister, Ashley Biden, attended both the first and second day of proceedings.
Tuesday’s opening addresses to the jury by both federal prosecutors and Hunter Biden’s defense attorney were followed by testimony from an FBI agent who investigated the case. The day ended with the agent still on the stand.
DAY 1 RECAP:Hunter Biden gun trial: Jury selected after full day in court. What happened?
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Defense attorney Abbe Lowell begins FBI agent’s cross-examination late Tuesday
Prosecutors spent the second half of Tuesday with Special Agent Erika Jensen on the witness stand.
They used her testimony to introduce a raft of text messages they say evidence drug use, as well as excerpts of Hunter Biden’s memoir.
The evidence included photos from Hunter Biden’s phone backup they say depict drugs.
Late into Tuesday, Abbe Lowell, Hunter Biden’s defense attorney, began his cross-examination of Jensen.
In it, he questioned her about the relative scarcity of text messages from October 2018, the month the gun was purchased, that actually reference drug use.
His cross-examination took the trial through its 4:30 p.m. adjournment and will continue Wednesday morning.
Hunter Biden's gun sale form entered into evidence
During the testimony of FBI Agent Erika Jensen, prosecutors entered the federal firearms form central to the trial into evidence.
Prosecutors claim Hunter Biden lied about his drug use on the form, which is the root of two of his felony gun charges.
Jensen’s testimony has also been used to introduce a raft of text messages referencing drug use, bank records showing cash withdrawals and excerpts from Hunter Biden’s memoir.
--Xerxes Wilson
Hunter Biden's laptop could be used as evidence in federal gun charges trial
Hunter Biden's laptop and its contents have been a point of controversy since October 2020, weeks before the contested election, when Donald Trump'sformer lawyer Rudy Giulianiturned it over to police and the New York Post.
The laptop eventually led to aggressive Houseinvestigations into President Joe Biden. But its more salacious contents, including explicit photos and videos of Hunter Biden, have continuously stoked the fire of controversy.
It all started with John Paul Mac Isaac, the owner ofThe Mac Shop in Wilmington, Delaware, who said a man identifying himself as Hunter Biden brought in three liquid-damaged laptops in April 2019. Onelaptop was left behind, and Mac Isaac ended up sharing it with Rudy Giuliani's lawyer because he believed it would make him safer.
The contents not only stoked a Ukraine interference conspiracy but revealed sexually explicit photos of Biden, as well as him using drugs.
--Xerxes Wilson and Kinsey Crowley
FBI agent testimony delves into Hunter Biden messages
After playing more than one hour of audio excerpts from Hunter Biden’s 2021 memoir, FBI agent Erika Jensen is now discussing text messages and emails sent to and from Hunter Biden.
Jensen told the jury that some of the communications were derived from hard drive backups directly from Apple.
Others were derived from the hard drive of the infamous laptop that computer repairman John Paul Mac Issac said was abandoned at his shop in Wilmington.
WHAT TO KNOW:Hunter Biden's laptop could be used as evidence in federal gun charges trial
Jensen testified the subpoenaed data that includes Whats App messages, text messages and other data shows his drug use.
Hunter Biden’s uncle, James Biden, will be a defense witness
Hunter Biden’s uncle, James Biden, will be a defense witness at his nephew’s trial on federal gun charges.
James Biden, who is President Joe Biden’s brother, has helped his nephew pay for rehabilitation and therapy to deal with his addiction to drugs, according to the defense.
The appearance threatens to attract more political attention to the trial. House Republicans have investigated Hunter and James Biden to see whether their foreign business deals benefited President Biden.
Hunter and James Biden have denied wrongdoing and the White House described the inquiries as baseless. A key witness has been charged with lying to the FBI.
--Swapna Venugopta Ramaswamy
Jury hearing Biden memoir excerpts
Prosecutors called FBI Special Agent Erika Jensen as the first witness, using her to introduce evidence like text messages, bank statements and book excerpts they say show Hunter Biden’s drug use.
The jury is now listening to a series of excerpts from Hunter Biden’s memoir “Beautiful Things.” Passages from the book are displayed on a large screen in the courtroom as prosecutors play a narration of the book by Hunter Biden.
--Xerxes Wilson
Hunter Biden's cash withdrawals due to lack of credit card, not for drugs: defense
Prosecutors have said they will show Hunter Biden withdrew large amounts of cash, inferring that was for drugs. Prosecutor Derek Hines said that includes a $5,000 withdrawal the day he purchased the gun.
In opening statements to the jury, defense attorney Abbe Lowell told the jury those withdrawals have a more innocent explanation: Hunter Biden didn’t have a credit card.
“He withdrew cash for lots of things, which are the opposite of buying drugs,” Lowell said, noting Hunter Biden spent “thousands and thousands” on recovery and rehab around that time.
--Xerxes Wilson
Defense seeks to distance drug use from Hunter Biden's gun purchase
In opening statements, prosecutors said Hunter Biden’s drug abuse occurred both before, during and after he purchased the gun central to his felony trial.
However, Abbe Lowell said evidence will show “Hunter was not using when he bought the gun.”
He noted the form’s question about drug use asked whether a person “is” using drugs, not “have you ever been.”
“When the form wants to ask someone ‘have you ever done something,’ the form knows how to do that,” Lowell said.
He told the jury what is important is Hunter Biden’s state of mind when he walked into the gun shop, not what he wrote in a book in 2021.
Both sides have disputed precisely what timeframe jurors should use when evaluating whether Biden was an unlawful drug user or addicted when he purchased the gun. Final jury instructions have not yet been approved by the court.
--Xerxes Wilson
Gun shop cut corners to sell Hunter Biden a gun: defense
Defense attorney Abbe Lowell noted that the people who sold Hunter Biden his gun did not receive verification of his address, as they are legally required to do.
It’s part of a defense that will emphasize that Hunter Biden did not knowingly lie when he filled out the form to buy the gun.
“A sale is a sale and that was their goal that day,” Lowell said. “You will hear they wanted it done quickly.”
Lowell emphasized that the gun form defines things like fugitive, but not portions that pertain to drug use.
He implored the jury to listen to whether people who work at the gun store know what the drug-related terms actually mean and said the man who sold the gun to Hunter Biden did not explain what the terms meant.
--Xerxes Wilson
Hunter Biden's defense: prosecutors can’t prove Biden believed he was addicted
In opening statements, defense attorney Abbe Lowell told jurors prosecutors can’t prove Hunter Biden knowingly lied on the gun form.
Pounding the lectern, Lowell said nobody will dispute that Hunter Biden struggled with drug use.
But he emphasized that much of the evidence outlined by prosecutors pertains to instances well before and after when Hunter Biden purchased the gun central to the case.
He noted Hunter Biden had been in rehab in California months before buying the gun. He emphasized that prosecutors can’t prove at the time he bought the gun, that he believed himself to be addicted or an unlawful user of drugs.
--Xerxes Wilson
Gun dealer unaware that Hunter Biden used drugs: prosecutors
In opening statements Tuesday, Prosecutor Derek Hines outlined the evidence against Hunter Biden.
He told the jury about Biden going into a northern Delaware gun shop to purchase a .38 caliber revolver and how a gun shop employee will tell the jury he watched Biden fill out a federal form stating he was not an unlawful drug user or addicted to controlled substances.
“What Mr. [Gordon] Cleveland didn’t know was that Mr. Biden was an unlawful user and he lied,” Hines said.
He laid out how Biden’s gun was tossed in the trash of a Delaware grocery store by Hallie Biden, his brother’s widow and his ex-girlfriend.
He said prosecutors will show that Biden was addicted and an unlawful drug user through his text communications, as well as excerpts from his memoir.
--Xerxes Wilson
Hallie Biden granted immunity to testify about Hunter Biden’s drug use
A prosecutor told jurors that Hallie Biden, the widow of Hunter Biden’s brother, would testify about his drug use and her own, under a grant of immunity.
Hallie Biden was married to Beau Biden, who died in 2015. She was then in a relationship with Hunter Biden after the death.
Prosecutor Derek Hines said she had become a drug user at the time as well but ceased using months before October 2018, when Hunter Biden purchased the gun at issue in his federal trial. Hallie Biden is the one who threw the gun at the center of the trial into a grocery store trash can.
Hines said prosecutors will also call Zoe Kestan, Hunter Biden’s former girlfriend, to discuss his frequent use of crack cocaine. She is also testifying with a grant of immunity.
“The agreement they have requires them to tell the truth noting more nothing less,” he said.
--Xerxes Wilson
One juror dropped from Hunter Biden trial
A juror dropped out the day after being selected for Hunter Biden’s federal trial on gun charges because she didn’t have transportation from southern Delaware to the Wilmington courthouse, U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika said Tuesday.
Twelve jurors – six men and six women – had been chosen Monday, along with four women alternates.
Noreika said one of the jurors had been “lost” before the start of opening arguments Tuesday because she begged to be dismissed for living an hour away and not having a car, job or money for parking.
--Bart Jansen
‘No one is above the law’: Hunter Biden prosecutor tells jury
The prosecution in Hunter Biden’s trial on gun charges told the jury Tuesday the reason the president’s son was in the courtroom was because of choices he made.
"No one is above the law, it doesn’t matter who you are or what your name is," special prosecutor Derek Hines told the jury.
"Each day in courtrooms like this one, defendants from all walks of life are tried because of the choices they make, not the people they are,” Hines added. “Choices they made to break the law. This case is no different."
— Xerxes Wilson
Who is David Weiss?
Justice Department special counsel David Weiss, who is overseeing the prosecution of Hunter Biden, was appointed the U.S. attorney in Delaware by former President Donald Trump in 2017.
Weiss investigated Biden for years beforereaching a plea agreementfor the president’s son to admit two tax misdemeanors and enter a pretrial program to potentially erase a drug charge. But U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika refused to rubber stamp because of disputes about whether it would protect Biden from future charges.
Attorney General Merrick Garlandappointed Weiss as special counsel in August to continue his investigation. Weiss secured indictments on gun charges in Delaware, in the trial that started Monday, and on tax charges in California, with that trial set to begin Sept. 5.
Weiss has been criticized by Republicans as going too soft on Biden by reaching a “sweetheart deal” in the plea agreement. Democrats have criticized him for being too hard on Biden by pursuing charges that are rarely enforced.
Garland has defended Weiss as an independent prosecutor following the facts and the law.
— Kinsey Crowley and Bart Jansen
Who is Abbe Lowell?
Hunter Biden’s main lawyer, Abbe Lowell, has a long history of working with Democrats and Republicans.
Lowell represented Ivanka Trump while she wasa White House aide, chiming in as an ethics adviser.He also defended Jared Kushner when House members questioned his use of WhatsApp tocommunicate with foreign leaders.
Now, he is defendingHunter Bidenwho faces three felony charges related to purchasing a gun in 2018. Biden officially added Lowell to his legal team aftera plea dealfell through in July that would have covered tax charges and the gun charges. It was seen at the time as a way to take a moreaggressive responseto the investigation into him, which have been going on for more than five years.
He was the chief minority counsel during the impeachment proceedings againstPresident Bill Clinton.
— Kinsey Crowley
Who’s testifying at the trial?
While every witness in the case isn't set in stone, there have been reports about who's expected to testify at the Delaware trial.
At least two employees from thegun store at the center of the caseare expected to testify at the trial. Millard Greer, a former state police officer who authored the final investigative report on the incident included in court files,is expected to testify.
Hallie Biden, who was married to President Joe Biden's other son, the late Beau Biden, is also expected to provide testimony. Hallie Biden and Hunter Biden were in a relationship in 2018, and she told law enforcement officials she found a gun in Hunter Biden's vehicle and threw it away outside of a Delaware store.
Who is Hunter Biden's wife, Melissa Cohen?
Hunter Biden is currently married to Melissa Cohen, a 38-year-old South African filmmaker.
He met her in May 2019 andless than a week later, he proposed.
The Biden family was not at the wedding.Hunter told The New Yorkerof his father's support for the marriage.
“I called my dad and said that we just got married. He was on speaker, and he said to her, 'Thank you for giving my son the courage to love again.'
