OAN’s James Meyers
11:52 AM – Tuesday, July 9, 2024
Hunter Biden withdrew his bid for a new trial on Tuesday after federal prosecutors were highly critical of him and his legal team for their “misunderstanding of appellate practice” and “failure to read” prior court orders.
The 54-year-old first son, who was convicted on June 11th on three counts related to lying about his drug addiction in order to obtain a firearm, had filed his motion for a new trial on June 24th, claiming that Delaware federal Judge Maryellen Noreika did not have authority over the trial due to pending rulings in his appeals case.
However, Special Counsel David Weiss recently told the court that the first son’s motion is “meritless,” saying the Philadelphia-based 3rd Circuit had given Noreika the approval to try the first son and that the defense counsel overlooked this matter.
“[Hunter Biden’s] motion is based on his belief that prior to his trial, the Third Circuit was required to issue a formal mandate and therefore this Court somehow lacked jurisdiction even though the Third Circuit had held that it did not have jurisdiction,” prosecutors with Weiss’s office said in a July 8th court filings.
“The defendant’s motion is meritless and is based on his apparent misunderstanding of appellate practice and his failure to read the Third Circuit’s Orders, issued before trial, which clearly stated ‘in Lieu of Mandate,’” the special counsel’s office added.
Biden’s defense attorney, Abbe Lowell, filed a reply: “As it appears that the Third Circuit views issuing a certified order ‘in lieu’ of a mandate as compliant with … procedure for shortening the time for issuance of a mandate, Mr. Biden withdraws his motion.”
Meanwhile, Hunter faces up to a maximum of 25 years in prison when he is eventually sentenced later this year, though he is unlikely to receive such a lengthy sentence under the federal sentencing guidelines.
Noreika has yet to schedule a sentencing date.
Additionally, the president’s son is due to go on trial September 5th in Los Angeles, where he is accused of evading $1.4 million in taxes from the years 2016 through 2019.
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