Hunter Biden's lawyers argued in a court filing Tuesday that federal prosecutors mistook sawdust in the photo used to justify the gun charge for cocaine.
Biden pleaded not guilty to two misdemeanor tax charges and a felony firearms charge at a hearing on July 26, after a plea deal announced on June 20 fell through. Attorneys Abby Lowell, Christopher Mann and Bartholomew Dalton argued that the photo, which clearly showed three lines of cocaine, was not the substance. filing. (Related article: 'Timing reveals fraud': Fox News legal analyst Hunter Biden says he will defend himself as soon as Wednesday)
“The prosecution is completely wrong both in saying that Mr. Biden 'took' this photo and in claiming that the photo depicts 'cocaine,'” Biden's lawyers said in a prepared statement. “Multiple sources have indicated, and an investigation into the discovery confirms that this is actually a photo of sawdust from a professional carpenter and sent to Mr. Biden, and not the other way around. Ta.”
Hunter Biden, son of U.S. President Joe Biden, leaves a meeting of the House Oversight Committee at the Capitol on January 10, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Photo provided by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
“More specifically, this discovery identifies this as a photo taken in the office of Mr. Biden's then-psychiatrist Dr. Keith Abloh, who first received the photo. ” [a] Mr. Biden's lawyer went on to text Mr. Biden, saying, “This is a row of sawdust in my office that was sent to me by a master carpenter who was addicted to coke.'' “The message accompanying the photo conveyed that Mr. Biden, too, can overcome any addiction. Prosecutors have not disclosed the date of the photo, but the message from Dr. Abloh is dated November 2018. It is the 20th of the month.”
Biden was indicted in September on three counts of felony firearms charges, including making false statements while under the influence of drugs and illegally possessing a firearm. He pleaded not guilty at his October arraignment.
Federal prosecutors said in a January filing that powder cocaine was found in the holster of a Colt Cobra revolver Biden bought. If Biden is convicted, he could be sentenced to up to 25 years in prison.
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