Hunter Biden’s Lawyer Blames DOJ’s Firearms Charges on ‘Political Pressure’ from Trump and MAGA Allies

Hunter Biden’s defense lawyer on Tuesday blamed “political pressure from former President Trump and his MAGA allies” as the reason the Justice Department charged his client with three federal firearms charges.

Abbe Lowell’s comments came in a statement issued shortly after he appeared in federal court alongside the son of President Joe Biden in Wilmington, Del. Hunter Biden entered a not guilty plea. 

The lawyer said the pressure from Republicans forced “the Justice Department to ignore the law and deviate from its policies in cases like this one.”

“The only substantive and relevant changes since July, when the US Attorney decided against pursuing these exact charges against Mr. Biden, has been various court rulings undermining the constitutionality of the law at issue here and a coordinated, partisan attack on our system of justice by right-wing Republicans,” Lowell said in the statement. 

Special Counsel David Weiss brought criminal charges against Hunter Biden last month for one count of possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful use of, or addicted to, a controlled substance; and two counts alleging he made false statements in the course of purchasing the gun.

As a U.S. attorney in Delaware, Weiss's team initially had structured a plea deal with Hunter Biden and his lawyers that involved him entering a guilty plea to two federal tax misdemeanors and an agreement to enter a diversion program stemming from a firearms felony.

But that plan fell apart during a hearing in July before a federal judge who raised questions about whether the DOJ agreement amounted to a wider degree of immunity from future prosecution for other related potential crimes.

At the time, House Republicans had tried to intervene in the Hunter Biden case and were threatening to launch impeachment proceedings back in Washington, D.C., against his father.

Following the break-down of the plea deal, Attorney General Merrick Garland named Weiss to be a special counsel overseeing the continuing investigation. Then, just days after Weiss secured the gun charge against Hunter Biden, the 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals struck down the underlying law that prevents the possession of firearms among unlawful drug users.

Hunter Biden, 53, returned to court in Delaware on Tuesday morning accompanied by Lowell for his first appearance since the plea deal's collapse. The president's son barely spoke during the court proceedings. 

U.S. Magistrate Judge Christopher Burke released Biden on Tuesday under the same conditions he faced at the time of the failed plea deal. Among other things, Hunter Biden is prohibited from using controlled substances or possessing weapons, including firearms.