Hunter Biden trial: President changes his schedule to be with his son after guilty verdict

President Joe Biden has revealed he will not pardon his son, Hunter Biden, if he is convicted on felony gun charges.

ABC News’ David Muir asked the president point blank if he would accept the outcome of his son’s trial. “Yes,” the president replied, also telling Muir he would rule out pardoning his son if convicted.

In Thursday’s interview, Biden also told ABC News he thinks Trump has attempted to “undermine” the law since his conviction.

“He got a fair trial,” Biden said. “The jury spoke.”

Hunter Biden’s federal gun trial resumed in Delaware, with the judge discussing final jury instructions with attorneys.

The judge began Monday’s proceedings by overruling many of the defense team’s objections to her proposed instructions. Specifically, the word “knowingly”.

Hunter Biden is charged with three felonies stemming from a handgun purchase in October 2018. Prosecutors say he lied when buying the gun by stating that he was not a drug user or addict.

The defense and the prosecution painted two starkly different pictures of Hunter Biden’s 2018 gun purchase during closing arguments on Monday.

Lawyers for Biden outlined a story of a recovering addict who genuinely believed he was on the mend when he checked a box saying that he wasn’t an active user of illicit drugs on a form to buy a firearm on 12 October 2018.

Meanwhile, the prosecution argued that Biden was well aware that he was an addict and an active drug user when he bought the 38 Colt Special at StarQuest Shooters and Survival Supply in Wilmington.

Biden is accused of knowingly buying a firearm while being addicted to crack cocaine, a violation of federal law.

The president’s son faces three counts: False statement in the purchase of a firearm, false statement in a record required to be kept, and being a drug user or drug addict in possession of a firearm.

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Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, is on trial for three federal gun-related charges after he allegedly unlawfully obtained a firearm in October 2018.

Among those testifying are three of Hunter’s former romantic partners: his ex-wife; his ex-girlfriend; and his sister-in-law-turned-lover.

Ariana Baio reports:

Jurors are expected to return to the federal building in Wilmington, Delaware to continue deliberations in the federal gun charges trial.

It is unclear when or if they will reach a verdict but they must vote unanimously to convict Biden on any of the criminal charges.

District Court Judge Maryellen Noreika, 57, was initially assigned to the case, brought by special counsel David Weiss, back in June 2023.

At the time, the president’s son was expected to take a plea deal after striking an agreement with prosecutors to plead guilty to lesser tax charges and avoid the gun charges altogether.

But the federal judge was thrust into the spotlight when she suddenly rejected the deal in the 11th hour – calling it “not standard.”

Judge Noreika’s decision caused Biden’s cases to be split, leading to a three-count indictment on gun-related charges in Delaware and a nine-count indictment on federal tax charges in Los Angeles.

Appointed in 2017, Judge Noreika serves as one of the four judges for Delaware’s single-federal district court.

Though she was nominated by former president Trump, her nomination was recommended and supported by Delaware’s two Democratic senators Tom Carper and Chris Coons.

She worked for the law firm Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell for nearly 24 years before her nomination and appointment to the district court in 2018.

During her career, Judge Noreika has donated to both Republican and Democratic campaigns – though more often to Republicans.

She has gained a reputation for no-nonsense professionalism and sets a high standard for technical legal matters.

The jury has entered the courthouse and resumed deliberations for the day.

Hunter Biden and his wife, Melissa Cohen Biden, are the only two Bidens to have arrived at the federal courthouse in Wilmington, Delaware on Tuesday.

No other Biden family members arrived – though they may return when the verdict is read once the jury is finished deliberating.