WASHINGTON - A federal judge in Delaware on April 12 declined to dismiss gun charges against Hunter Biden, one of the two criminal cases against Joe Biden's son as the Democratic US president ramps up his campaign for re-election.
US District Judge Maryellen Noreika in Wilmington ruled against Hunter Biden's request to dismiss two counts of lying about his use of illegal narcotics when he purchased a Colt Cobra handgun in 2018 and a third count of illegally possessing that weapon.
The ruling clears the way for a trial on the gun charges, tentatively scheduled to start on June 3 in Wilmington. Biden has pleaded not guilty.
Special Counsel David Weiss brought the gun charges in September 2023, when Hunter Biden became the first child of a sitting president to be indicted.
He faces more than 20 years in prison if he is convicted on the gun charges.
Republican candidate Donald Trump, who is seeking to regain the presidency in the Nov 5 US election, faces four criminal indictments of his own.
Biden's attorneys had argued the gun charges should be dismissed for a variety of reasons including that the law under which he was charged was likely unconstitutional after the US Supreme Court expanded gun rights in a 2022 ruling that set a tough new test to determine the legality of firearms restrictions.
Biden's legal team also had argued that Mr Weiss was not appropriately appointed, that Biden was being selectively prosecuted and that he had a binding agreement that shielded him from prosecution.
Biden also has pleaded not guilty to federal tax crimes in a separate case brought by Mr Weiss in California, facing up to 17 years in prison if convicted. That trial is scheduled to start on June 20.
The special counsel accused Biden of failing to pay US$1.4 million (S$1.9 million) in taxes between 2016 and 2019 while spending millions of dollars on drugs, escorts, exotic cars and other high-ticket items.
US District Judge Mark Scarsi in Los Angeles on April 1 rejected Biden's motions to dismiss the tax indictment. REUTERS
