WASHINGTON — Hunter Biden has been found guilty of three felony gun charges related to gun possession by a drug user, in a federal trial that has put the spotlight on the president's son's history of drug use and recovery.
The president's only surviving son could face up to 25 years in prison for the three charges, although it is unlikely he will receive the maximum sentence as a first-time offender.
Will Joe Biden pardon Hunter Biden?
President Joe Biden previously said in a ABC News interview while the trial was in progress that he wouldn't pardon his son for the gun felonies if he was convicted.
When asked by David Muir if he would accept the verdict, the president simply said "yes."
Will Hunter Biden go to jail?
He faces up to 25 years in prison when he is sentenced by Judge Maryellen Noreika, though first-time offenders do not usually get anywhere near the maximum, and it’s unclear whether she would give him time behind bars.
Even if he gets probation for the gun charges, Hunter Biden's legal troubles aren’t over. He faces a trial in September in California on charges of failing to pay $1.4 million in taxes and congressional Republicans have signaled they will keep going after him in their stalled impeachment effort into the president.
The president has not been accused or charged with any wrongdoing by prosecutors investigating his son.
What is Hunter Biden charged with?
Prosecutors argued that he illegally purchased and possessed a gun while addicted to crack cocaine. Federal law prohibits illegal drug users from owning firearms, and one of the questions a buyer must fill out when purchasing a gun asks if they are addicted to any illegal substances.
Jurors found Hunter Biden guilty of lying to a federally licensed gun dealer, making a false claim on the application by saying he was not a drug user and illegally having the gun for 11 days.