Hunter Biden attorney, prosecutors agree on schedule that would push trial date past January 2024
Hunter Biden has reached an agreement with federal prosecutors that would push the start of his trial on gun charges to sometime past Jan. 30, 2024, according to a Friday court filing.
The filing, submitted to the US District Court for the District of Delaware by the first son’s attorney Abbe Lowell, indicates that both the Justice Department and Biden’s defense team “have conferred” and agreed to a schedule “for all pretrial motions.”
Biden’s defense team plans to file pre-trial motions by Dec. 11, the government agreed to respond to those by Jan. 16, 2024, and replies from Lowell will be submitted by Jan. 30, 2024, according to the filing.
The schedule, which must be approved by the federal judge overseeing the case before being finalized, would push Biden’s trial start date into February 2024, at the earliest.
Pre-trial motions were previously due to the court by Nov. 3.
A trial date has not been scheduled in the case.
President Biden’s 53-year-old son was indicted on Sept. 14 by special counsel David Weiss on three felony counts related to a 2018 gun purchase while he was addicted to crack cocaine.
Hunter Biden is accused of making false statements about his drug use when he purchased the Colt Cobra revolver.
The first son faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted on all charges.
The indictment came after Hunter agreed to plead guilty to tax crimes and enter a diversion program on the gun charges that would’ve seen him serve no jail time.
The deal fell apart in a Delaware courtroom in July after it was scrutinized by US District Judge Maryellen Noreika.
Hunter’s defense team accused federal prosecutors in August of having reneged on the original plea agreement, which they said remained “valid” and “binding” despite its implosion in Delaware court.
Earlier this month, Hunter’s legal team demanded that the gun charges be dismissed, claiming that the first son has immunity against the indictment stemming from the earlier plea agreement with prosecutors.
The attorneys argued the “only charge” Weiss “was permitted to bring” as part of the diversion agreement were tax charges.
The first son’s next court appearance in Delaware has not been set.
