Hunter Biden’s ex-wife Kathleen Buhle and former girlfriend Zoe Kestan both testified Wednesday on Day 3 of his federal gun trial. The case marks the first time the child of a sitting president was ever put on trial during their father’s presidency.
The trial proceeded with cross-examination of an FBI witness concerning Biden’s laptop and a discussion of a timeline of his addiction with Buhle, who was married to Hunter Biden for 20 years and shares three daughters with him; and Kestan, who was involved with Biden around 2017-2018. A third woman romantically linked to Hunter Biden — Hallie Biden, the widow of Hunter Biden’s brother Beau — is expected to to take the stand on Thursday. Hallie Biden found and discarded the gun at the center of the case.
Biden’s defense attorney Abbe Lowell resumed his cross-examination Wednesday morning of FBI agent Erika Jensen in front of U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika. Jensen was the first witness under cross-examination to discuss the well-publicized laptop, which was subpoenaed in 2019 and entered into evidence Tuesday. They went over the timeline of Biden’s past drug use and how he allegedly lied on a federal form that asks about addiction in relation to gun ownership. Jensen said under cross-examination that Biden might not have been using drugs continuously from 2015-2019.
Biden’s ex-wife Kathleen Buhle took the stand after Jensen as the prosecutor’s first witness, testifying that her 25-year marriage to Hunter Biden deteriorated due to his past drug and alcohol use, but that she never personally saw him consume drugs. Buhle said that she would often find drug remnants in his car and that she saw him frequently work and interact with friends or family while she believed he was under the influence of crack cocaine, but he would try to hide it from people close to him.
Biden’s ex-girlfriend Kestan also took the stand, saying she met Biden in December 2017 at a Manhattan strip club and dated him for several months, testifying that he would smoke crack very often in private and admitting at times she would help him buy drugs at his request by using his mobile banking app at an ATM. She said at times she would see Biden smoke crack “every 20 minutes or so,” but that he remained “cognizant and coherent,” and would often drink alcohol while on drugs.
Also on the stand on Wednesday was Gordon Cleveland, the man who sold Hunter Biden the firearm. Cleveland testified that Hunter Biden did not seem confused by the form, while defense attorney Abbe Lowell tried to show how Biden was not addicted at the time to drugs, but rather alcohol.
And the end of proceedings on Wednesday, the prosecution said they have six witnesses remaining, and it is “possible” they will rest their case on Thursday; with Biden’s lawyer sharing that the first witness for the defense could potentially come Friday morning.
If convicted on all counts, Hunter Biden could face up 25 years in prison and $750,000 in fines, according to court filings. However, because Biden does not have a violent past and is an alleged first-time offender, it is possible he could get a lighter sentence.
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