PRESIDENT Joe Biden has issued a pardon for his troubled son Hunter following gun and tax charges in a shock twist.
The bombshell decision comes despite the president, 82, repeatedly insisting he will not pardon his son or commute his sentence.
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US President Joe Biden has decided to pardon his son Hunter BidenCredit: AFP
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Hunter’s drug use has also been in the spotlight
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President Joe Biden and his son Hunter BidenCredit: AP
Shameless Biden claimed his son was “unfairly prosecuted” when he announced his drastic decision.
The outgoing US leader said in June that he “will not pardon ex-crack addict Hunter, 54, after he was convicted of three firearms charges.
Then he said: “I submit to the jury’s decision. I will do it and I will not forgive him.”
Following Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election last month, the White House again rejected a pardon.
Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on November 8: “We have been asked that question several times. Our answer stands, and that is no.”
But just two months before leaving the White House, Biden used his powers to spare his youngest son from going to prison.
In a statement released by the White House, Biden said: “Today I signed a pardon for my son Hunter.
“From the day I took office, I said I would not interfere in the decision-making of the Department of Justice, and I kept my word even as I watched my son be selectively and unfairly prosecuted.”
He added: “My whole career I have followed a simple principle: Just tell the American people the truth. They will be honest.
“Here’s the truth: I believe in the justice system, but while I’ve been fighting this, I also believe that raw politics has infected this process and led to a miscarriage of justice – and when I made this decision this weekend, there was no point in delaying it any longer. .
“I hope the American people will understand why a father and a president would make this decision.”
The pardon comes just days before Hunter’s Dec. 12 sentencing for his conviction on federal gun charges.
Hunter was scheduled to be sentenced in a separate criminal trial on Dec. 16 after pleading guilty to federal tax evasion charges in September.
The pardon spares the younger Biden from possible prison time for gun and tax crimes.
Future President Trump (78) condemned the decision.
Referring to those imprisoned for the January 6, 2021, riot at the US Capitol, he wrote: “Does the pardon Joe gave Hunter include the J-6 hostages, now imprisoned for years?
“What abuse and injustice.”
“That justice system must be fixed and due process must be established for all Americans, which is exactly what President Trump will do when he returns to the White House with an overwhelming mandate from the American people.”
Hunter’s pardon ends a long-running legal saga for the president’s son, who publicly disclosed he was under federal investigation in December 2020, a month after his father’s 2020 victory.
In June, as his son Hunter faced trial in a Delaware gun case, Biden ruled out a pardon or clemency for his son in an interview with ABC News.
Back on Nov. 8, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre dismissed the possibility of a pardon or clemency for the younger Biden, saying, “We’ve been asked that question many times. Our answer stands, and that’s no.”
Hunter was previously found guilty of all charges in a federal gun trial in June.
Hunter’s turbulent life came into the spotlight after shocking testimony was heard in a federal courtroom about his drug addiction, which spiraled out of control after the death of his brother Beau Biden in 2015.
A 12-member jury in Wilmington, Delaware, convicted Hunter, who chose not to testify in his own defense, on all charges after deliberating for about three hours.
Hunter stared straight ahead and showed no emotion as the verdict was read.
The first son shook hands with some of his associates sitting in the gallery behind the defense table and hugged his lawyers, Abbe Lowell and David Kolanski, before kissing his wife, Melissa Cohen Biden.
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Hunter Biden has two allegations against himCredit: AP: Associated Press
“NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW”
Prosecutors confirmed the story that Hunter knowingly lied on a firearms form about drug use when he bought the gun nearly six years ago.
Federal prosecutors said Hunter entered the StarQuest Shooters & Survival Supply store in Wilmington on Oct. 12, 2018, and purchased a Colt Cobra .38 revolver.
The government said the president’s son answered “No” to a question on a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives form that asked if he used or was addicted to drugs or controlled substances.
“The defendant knew he was using crack and was addicted to crack during the relevant time period,” prosecutor Leo Wise said during closing arguments.
“There is no evidence that anyone else was in possession of the gun from Oct. 12 to Oct. 23, other than the defendant,” Wise added of the gun Hunter possessed for 11 days.
Jurors heard scathing testimony from those closest to Hunter about his longtime drug addiction.
Prosecutors even played audio excerpts in the courtroom from Hunter’s 2021 memoir, Beautiful Things, which described in the defendant’s words his drug problems and his sobriety.
HUNTER’S DRUG ADDICTION IN FOCUS
Federal prosecutors called three of Hunter’s exes as witnesses. Everyone testified for a long time about his addiction to crack cocaine.
Kathleen Buhle, Hunter’s ex-wife, told the courtroom she found a crack pipe in their home and drug paraphernalia in his truck.
Buhle told jurors that her ex-husband admitted to smoking crack.
Hunter’s ex-lover and former sex worker, Zoe Kestan, shockingly witnessed how the first son smoked crack every 20 minutes from the moment he woke up.
Meanwhile, Hallie Biden, Beau Biden’s widow, briefly described her romance with Hunter and how he introduced her to crack.
“It was a terrible experience that I went through, I’m embarrassed and ashamed of that period of my life,” said the repentant Hallie (50).
What were the charges against Hunter Biden?
HUNTER Biden was indicted on three gun-related charges in September 2023 after a plea deal with federal prosecutors collapsed.
Prosecutors allege Hunter purchased a .38 Colt Cobra revolver at a Delaware gun store on Oct. 12, 2018, and lied on an ATF firearms form when he said he did not abuse drugs.
These were the charges against him:
- Count 1: Hunter is charged with ‘knowingly making a false and fabricated written statement’ on a form used to purchase a firearm.
- Count 2: Hunter allegedly knowingly made false statements and representations to a gun dealer in Wilmington.
- When a person buys a gun, they must fill out a form with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and confirm that they have legal permission to buy a gun.
- The buyer must certify that he has no felony convictions, is not a fugitive, is in the United States legally, and is not addicted to or using illegal drugs.
- Count 3: Hunter was charged with illegal possession of a weapon while abusing drugs. He possessed the gun for 11 days in 2018.
- Counts one and two carry a maximum prison sentence of 10 years, while count three carries a maximum sentence of five years.
Hunter faced 25 years in prison.
However, first-time offenders rarely receive the maximum penalty.
Hunter has now, however, been pardoned by his departing father, President Biden.
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Hunter’s wife, Melissa Cohen Biden, was by his side throughout the trialCredit: EPA
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