The federal judge overseeing Hunter Biden’s gun trial made two significant decisions that could impact his defense on the eve of jury selection. The judge blocked one of Biden’s expert witnesses, a psychiatrist from Columbia University, who was expected to challenge the prosecutors’ claims that Biden knew he was an addict when he bought the gun in 2018. Additionally, she excluded an altered version of the federal firearms form filled out by Biden when he purchased the gun, preventing his lawyers from using it as evidence to discredit gun store employees who are expected to testify.
The rulings from Judge Maryellen Noreika could potentially make the already tough case for Hunter Biden even more challenging to win. Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, has pleaded not guilty to charges of illegally purchasing and owning a gun while abusing drugs. The judge’s decisions came in response to requests from special counsel David Weiss, who argued that the expert witness’s opinions were unclear and that the altered form was irrelevant and inadmissible. Noreika also criticized Biden’s defense team for pushing “conspiratorial” theories and unsupported rhetoric about the gun store employees’ motivations.
The exclusion of the expert witness and altered form as evidence could pose obstacles for Hunter Biden’s defense strategy in the upcoming trial. The defense aimed to use the expert witness to challenge the prosecution’s claims about Biden’s knowledge of his addiction at the time of the gun purchase and the altered form to undermine the credibility of the gun store employees. However, the judge deemed both pieces of evidence irrelevant or inadmissible, emphasizing the importance of presenting only the original ATF Form 4473 to the jury.
The original form, ATF Form 4473, is central to the case against Hunter Biden, as it is alleged that he falsely swore he was not using or addicted to drugs when he purchased the gun in 2018. Prosecutors maintain that Biden was still addicted to crack cocaine at that time, a claim supported by his own memoir. The jury selection for the trial is scheduled to begin on Monday morning in Wilmington. The decisions made by Judge Noreika may have a significant impact on the outcome of the trial and could potentially make it more difficult for Hunter Biden to defend himself against the charges.
Overall, the rulings made by Judge Noreika on the eve of Hunter Biden’s gun trial have dealt a blow to his defense strategy by blocking an expert witness and excluding a key piece of evidence. The judge’s decisions could make the case even more challenging for Biden, who is facing charges of illegally purchasing and owning a gun while abusing drugs. The defense’s attempt to use the expert witness and altered form as evidence was rejected, with the judge deeming them irrelevant or inadmissible. The original ATF Form 4473, which Hunter Biden is accused of falsifying, will be the focus of the trial as jury selection gets underway. The outcome of the trial may hinge on the judge’s rulings and the evidence presented in court.
