Hunter Biden asks for new trial in gun case - then cancels it

Hunter Biden’s lawyers filed a motion for a new trial following his conviction in a gun case. But what they did next has left onlookers baffled.

Lawyers for Hunter Biden asked for a new trial following his conviction on charges of lying about his drug addiction while buying a handgun - only to scrap the request shortly later.

In the historic first criminal prosecution of a sitting US president’s child, a jury on Tuesday found Hunter guilty on three felony counts stemming from his 2018 purchase of a handgun while addicted to crack cocaine.

The 54-year-old’s lawyers initially filed papers in Delaware federal court Monday morning saying trial judge Maryellen Noreika didn’t have jurisdiction over Hunter’s case due to pending rulings by the Philadelphia-based Third Circuit Court of Appeals, the New York Post reports.

Hunter Biden with his father, US President Joe Biden. Picture: Getty Images for World Food Program USA

But minutes later it appeared that the motion had been rescinded, the outlet reports.

“The Motion for a New Trial … has been deleted at the request of counsel,” a note in the court docket said.

The reason for the motion’s withdrawal is not known.

The judge has rejected multiple motions to drop the charges against Hunter.

Hunter faces up to 25 years in prison but it is unlikely as he is a first-time offender.

A date has not set for sentencing but it is expected to take place in the next few months.

Joe Biden said that he would not pardon his son Hunter or commute any sentence.

“No,” the US President replied when reporters at a G7 summit press conference in Italy.

“I’m extremely proud of my son Hunter. He has overcome an addiction, he’s one of the brightest, most decent men I know,” Mr Biden said.

“I said I’d abide by the jury decision. I will do that. I will not pardon him,” he said.

ANALYSIS: TOM MINEAR, US CORRESPONDENT

Joe Biden has a lot on his plate. Wars in Ukraine and Gaza, illegal immigration and stubborn inflation, and of course his flagging re-election effort against Donald Trump.

But nothing takes precedence for the President over the wellbeing of his son Hunter, whose battle with drug addiction has now culminated in him being found guilty of gun charges.

“I am the President, but I am also a dad,” Biden said after his son was convicted. In an alternate universe, this would be when the 81-year-old prioritised the latter over the former.

US President Joe Biden hugs his son Hunter Biden upon arrival at Delaware Air National Guard Base in New Castle, Delaware, after the guilty verdict. Picture: AFP

Anyone who has experienced addiction will recognise the support Hunter will need over the months to come as he faces the prospect of jail on top of another trial over unpaid taxes, all right in the middle of an election in which his failures will be used against his father.

This will weigh heavily on Biden. For Democrats who fear he is limping towards an electoral disaster against Trump, it could be the trigger he needs to abandon plans for a second term.

But this extraordinary campaign, as much as it seems to have been devised by Hollywood scriptwriters, is still rooted in reality. And Biden, having decided in April last year that he was his party’s best option to beat Trump, is not going to change his mind and walk away now.

US President Joe Biden boards Marine One to meet his son after he was convicted. Picture: AFP

Instead, he can only hope Americans are swayed more by his steadfast support for Hunter than Trump’s bid to tarnish the President with the crimes of his son.

In the wake of the verdict against Hunter, Trump suggested the case was “a distraction from the real crimes of the Biden crime family”, even though a Republican impeachment effort against the President has been an abject failure.

There is no equivalence – only one presidential candidate is a convicted felon. If anything, Hunter’s conviction undercuts Trump’s claim that he is the victim of a rigged justice system.

Nevertheless, it is clear that both Biden and Trump will remain consumed by these court battles that will keep causing havoc on the rocky road to November’s US election.