@cspanofficial: Hunter Biden, the president’s son, was convicted Tuesday on three felony counts stemming from his purchase of a firearm during a time he was using illegal drugs. After about three hours of deliberation, the jury unanimously found him guilty on all three counts, marking the first time a child of a sitting president has been convicted in federal court. The three charges stem from his purchase and possession of a Colt revolver in October 2018 during a time he was using crack cocaine. The first two counts relate to him filling out a form at the time of the purchase claiming he was not addicted to or using illegal drugs. The third count was for unlawfully possessing the firearm for 11 days. It is illegal for a person to possess a weapon while using illicit drugs. Federal investigators have scrutinized Mr. Biden’s business endeavors and personal life for years, and last June, his lawyers struck a deal with prosecutors under which he would plead guilty to a pair of misdemeanor tax violations and enter a pretrial diversion program to avoid prosecution on a felony gun charge. But the deal, which would have allowed him to avoid prison time, dramatically fell apart during a court hearing the next month after the judge raised concerns about the structure of the agreement and the breadth of an immunity deal. After the deal collapsed, Attorney General Merrick Garland named David Weiss, the Trump-appointed U.S. attorney for Delaware, as a special counsel, giving him broad latitude to investigate and charge the president’s son. In July, Mr. Weiss charged Mr. Biden with the three gun counts, to which he pleaded not guilty. Mr. Biden will be sentenced in the coming weeks. He faces up to 25 years in prison and $750,000 in fines, but he’d likely be given a far less severe sentence since he has no prior felonies. President Biden said in an interview with ABC News last week that he would respect the jury’s decision and not pardon his son if convicted. #hunterbiden #joebiden

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Tuesday 11 June 2024 15:27:57 GMT