Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, might have inadvertently helped unravel his defense attorney’s argument in his federal gun case during a recent interview with Axios, according to legal analyst Jonathan Turley.
The president’s son, who has been open about his struggles in overcoming drug addiction, was hit with three felonies brought by federal prosecutors in September, accused of lying on a federal background check form when purchasing a handgun in October 2018. Hunter Biden is also facing federal tax evasion charges leveled against him in December.
In a recent exclusive interview with Axios, Hunter Biden said that he sees maintaining his sobriety as a key part of his father’s reelection efforts. Republican lawmakers have homed in on Joe Biden’s family as part of an indictment inquiry into the president, and a public slip by his son could weigh heavily on his 2024 campaign.
Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, is shown outside a House Oversight Committee meeting on January 10 in Washington, D.C. The president’s son may have created issues for his defense in his federal gun-related…
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Hunter Biden also told the outlet about his journey to sobriety as it lined up with his father’s first presidential campaign—Hunter’s initial sobriety date was May 17, 2019, the day before his father entered the 2020 election. But the president’s son testified last summer that he had a “drink or two” after that, and that June 1, 2019, was his official sobriety date.
Turley, an attorney and professor at George Washington University Law School, reacted to Hunter Biden’s interview with Axios while appearing on Fox News Monday evening, saying that his sobriety timeline may pose an issue for his defense against his federal gun charges.
“The problem with his interview with Axios is that he blew away the suggested defense of his counsel, Abbe Lowell,” Turley told Fox News’ Bret Baier. “Lowell had suggested that they might argue that [Hunter Biden] was in a period of sobriety when he signed the statement falsely.”
Lowell told CNN’s Erin Burnett in September after the gun charges were filed, “At the time that he purchased this gun, I don’t think there’s evidence that that’s when [Hunter] was suffering” with a drug addiction. Lowell has also sought to throw out the indictment, writing in a motion in December that the law used to charge Hunter Biden is unconstitutional under the Second Amendment, which states that citizens have a right to possess firearms.
The Department of Justice has said that Lowell’s argument is a misinterpretation of the gun laws in question. Federal prosecutors also said in a court filing in January that an FBI chemist determined last year that cocaine residue was detected on a pouch that Hunter Biden used to hold his gun.
Turley also reacted to Hunter Biden’s interview on his website, saying,”It is becoming more and more difficult to claim a window of sobriety for the signing of the [background check] form when he is claiming that his sobriety date came over eight months later.”
“Hunter is now reconfirming what was obvious in his book: his addiction continued to rage until after his father announced for the presidency,” the attorney wrote.
Newsweek reached out to Lowell via email for comment on Monday.
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