Hunter Biden’s trial on gun charges will begin next month after judge rejects bid to delay

Hunter Biden will head to trial to face federal gun charges next month after a Delaware judge rejected his last-ditch bid to delay the trial until September.

President Joe Biden’s son is accused of lying about his history of drug abuse in order to buy a gun, which prosecutors say he possessed for eleven days.

He was indicted on three felony gun charges, including falsifying a firearms application, lying to a federally licensed gun dealer and possession of an illegally obtained gun, in September.

His attorneys have argued that the 54-year-old had struggled with drug addiction but did not break the law when filling out the form.

He has pleaded not guilty to the charges and faces 25 years in prison and fines of up to $750,000 if convicted.

Mr Biden’s attorneys told US District Judge Maryellen Noreika they needed several more months to decide on witnesses and review evidence submitted by the prosecution.

But the judge denied the request on Tuesday, paving the way for the trial to begin as planned on 3 June, according to recent court filings.

Earlier this month, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals also rejected Mr Biden’s bid to dismiss the federal gun charges against him.

The charges against the president’s son came after the US Justice Department spent nearly four years investigating his business dealings and personal conduct.

Earlier this year, Mr Biden gave testimony to House Republicans for six hours behind closed doors, as part of an impeachment probe against his father.

The transcript of the testimony, released days later, revealed Mr Biden accused Republican members of building an “entire partisan house of cards on lies.”

The ongoing impeachment inquiry – accusing the president of bribery and “corruption” through alleged family business dealings with foreign powers – has yielded nothing but chaos, not to mention no evidence to support the claims.

Last month, a hearing on the president’s potential impeachment descended into verbal blows between two members.

Republican chairman James Comer and Democratic congressman Jamie Raskin clashed repeatedly, each claiming the other “needed therapy.”