Hunter Biden set to appear in court on THIS date after judge rejects his request
Hunter Biden
A federal court in Delaware has ordered US President Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden to appear in the court on October 3 to face firearms charges, a day after his lawyers sought permission he be allowed to attend the first hearing virtually.
US Magistrate Judge from the District of Delaware, Christopher Burke, rejected Hunter's request, saying he should not receive special treatment.
"In the end, the Court agrees with both the Defendant and the Government, that Defendant should not receive special treatment in this matter — absent some unusual circumstance, he should be treated just as would any other defendant in our Court," Burke stated in the filing.
The federal judge, however, gave Hunter an extra week to comply, from the date originally set for the hearing, September 26.
The president's 53-year-old son was charged last week by a federal court in Delaware on two counts related to filing a form wherein he falsely claimed that he was not using drugs illegally at the time of purchase of the gun.
Meanwhile, a third count alleges that based on the false statements, he possessed a firearm while using narcotics, during an 11-day period in October of that year.
However, after the indictment, Hunter's lawyer Abbe David Lowell wrote a letter to the judge on Tuesday (September 19) and requested his client's first appearance take place via video conference whilst adding that Biden Jr. will plead not guilty.
"Mr Biden understands both the charges against him and his rights...and we believe the Court can be assured of that fact by conducting this initial appearance by video," read the letter.
"Mr Biden also will enter a plea of not guilty, and there is no reason why he cannot utter those two words by video conference," it added.
Watch |Gravitas: Did the White House influence the Hunter Biden case?
Hunter's near miss
Notably, the case would not have reached this stage if it wasn't for US District Judge Maryellen Noreikainterfering at the eleventh hour and saying she could not "rubber stamp the agreement", after raising certain concerns regarding the terms of the deal.
With the trial set to proceed, Hunter could face 25 years in prison if he is convicted on all three felony charges. However, such offences are seldom punished by jail time and given Hunter's political pull, owing to his father, it looks highly unlikely he will land in prison.
(With inputs from agencies)
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