Key family players at Hunter Biden's gun trial

Jessica Murphy - BBC News

5 June 2024 at 8:59 pm·3-min read

First Lady Jill Biden arrives at the federal court on the opening day of trial of Hunter Biden — US first lady Jill Biden has been a daily presence at Hunter Biden's criminal trial in Delaware [Reuters]

In court this week, multiple members of the Biden clan have joined Hunter Biden as his gun possession trial plays out in a Delaware courtroom.

The high-profile trial includes airing details of family turmoil caused by Mr Biden's drug addiction.

And it is unfolding as his father, US President Joe Biden, is in the midst of a tough race for re-election.

Some family members are potential witnesses, but others are in the courtroom to show public support for Mr Biden, 54, the first child of a sitting president to be a criminal defendant.

Joe Biden's youngest son is facing three felony firearms charges relating to his purchase of a gun while allegedly using narcotics.

He has pleaded not guilty.

Here are the Biden family members who have been in court this week:

Jill Biden

President Biden has stayed away from the trial playing out in Wilmington, but released a statement expressing support for his son, saying he has “boundless love" for him.

First lady Jill Biden, however, has been a constant presence.

Jill Biden married the president in 1977 after his first wife, Hunter Biden’s mother, died in a 1972 car accident.

The first lady is often seated in the first row behind Mr Biden, alongside his wife Melissa Cohen Biden

Jill and Hunter Biden have embraced during breaks in court proceedings.

Melissa Cohen Biden

Melissa Cohen Biden is Mr Biden's second wife

She has been described by Mr Biden as his "protector" and has proven herself a fierce supporter of her husband during the trial.

The pair, who share a 4-year-old son named Beau, are often seen holding hands as they enter and leave the courthouse.

Early in the week she angrily confronted a former Trump aide at the courthouse during a break in proceedings, launching into a profanity-laced tirade at Garrett Ziegler.

Mr Ziegler has circulated embarrassing messages and images from a laptop that once belonged to her husband, who is suing him.

She also was seen shaking her head in disapproval at some witness testimony.

Kathleen Buhle

Kathleen Buhle was married to Mr Biden between 1993 and 2017, and has three daughters with him.

While testifying at trial, she described how she learned of her former husband's drug use in 2015 when she found a crack pipe in an ashtray.

In her brief testimony on Wednesday, Ms Buhle spoke about searching her then-husband's car for drugs and drug paraphernalia, as well as his resistance at the time to entering a rehabilitation facility.

Hallie Biden

Hallie Biden is also on the prosecution’s list of witnesses.

She is the widow of Mr Biden’s older brother, Beau, who died in 2015 from brain cancer.

She later became romantically involved with Hunter Biden, and was the person who discarded the handgun he bought in October 2018.

She is expected to testify on Thursday about Mr Biden's drug use.

The federal prosecutor in the case revealed to jurors this week that she was introduced to crack cocaine by Mr Biden.

Ashley Biden

Ashley Biden showed up to court for the first two days of her brother's trial.

On Tuesday, she was seen wiping away tears as the court heard audiobook recordings of his memoir, Beautiful Things, that detailed past drug use.

Jack Owens

Jack Owens is the husband of Valerie Biden Owens - Joe Biden's sister - and Hunter Biden's uncle.

He has been seen attending the trial daily.

The Independent
A pair of siblings were stabbed and the sister’s dying words were that the killer was a man from Detroit. Thirty-four years later, he’s been arrested.
Pamela Sumpter, was raped and stabbed, and her brother John Sumpter was stabbed to death, at their Georgia home on July 15, 1990
People
Fla. Woman Who Sexually Abused Her 2 Young Sons, Family Dog Learns Fate: 'It Doesn’t Get More Evil'
Natalie Jesslynn Wagner, 28, of Port St. Lucie, made and sold videos of herself committing sex crimes against her children, 1 and 3, authorities said
LA Times
She died a convicted killer. On Friday, her kids saw a judge declare her innocent
Connie Dahl's sons were 3 and 8 when there mother was taken away in handcuffs, accused of a brutal murder. On Friday, a California judge declared her innocent — 39 years after the killing.
The Hill
Barrett breaks with conservatives over Jan. 6 obstruction charge ruling
In a pointed dissent, Justice Amy Coney Barrett skewered her fellow justices over their decision to narrow an obstruction charge used to prosecute scores of rioters who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. The Supreme Court voted 6-3 on Friday to side with Joseph Fischer, a former police officer accused of partaking in the…
BBC
Florida man in critical condition after shark attack
A law enforcement officer was able to apply a tourniquet to staunch the severe bleeding.
The Independent
Uvalde school police chief pictured in orange jumpsuit as he’s charged over mass shooting which left 21 dead
Uvalde police officers had wanted to enter the classrooms once they had protective shields but Pete Arredondo’s decision ‘overrode’ that action
The Hill
Ex-Trump official lauds Supreme Court ruling on Jan. 6 riot cases: ‘Absolutely right’
Former Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker (R) said that the Supreme Court was “absolutely right” in blocking the Justice Department (DOJ) from charging Jan. 6 rioters with obstruction. Whitaker, who served as former President Trump’s Acting AG for three months in 2018 after Jeff Sessions vacated the role at the president’s request, said he viewed…
The Daily Beast
Supreme Court Tells Bannon He’s Gotta Show Up to Jail on Monday
MAGA loyalist Steve Bannon will have to report to jail on Monday after the nation’s highest court declined to indulge his pleas for a last-minute reprieve.Bannon, 70, was sentenced to four months in jail in 2022 for contempt of Congress after he blew off a subpoena from the House committee investigating the Capitol riot. He has spent two years since then trying every avenue of appeal, arguing that he was only following the advice of his lawyer, who told him then-President Donald Trump had evoked
People
A Mother Served Her 19-Year-Old Son an Eviction Notice. Now He's Accused of Strangling Her to Death
Conner Kobold is charged with the murder of his mother, Shanelle Burns
The Telegraph
Driver chains £100,000 Land Rover to tree in bid to stop thieves
A Land Rover owner has chained their car to a tree in London to prevent it being stolen.
The Telegraph
New York police shoot and kill 13-year-old boy carrying replica handgun
New York police have shot dead a 13-year-old boy who was carrying a replica handgun only capable of firing pellets.
The Telegraph
Watch: Moment police arrest man accused of plotting to kidnap and rape Holly Willoughby
A security guard accused of a plot to kidnap, rape and murder Holly Willoughby said the star was “a fantasy of mine” as police raided his flat, according to body-worn video footage played in court.
PA Media: UK News
Man who stopped female driver sentenced for impersonating police officer
Wiltshire Police described the incident as ‘concerning’.
The Independent
His wife has been missing for a week. Now he’s charged with using her credit cards to buy cleaning supplies
Zachariah Rasch, 42, bought $6,000 worth of items with Crystal Rasch’s credit cards, including gloves, stain remover and carpet cleaners
Associated Press
Eagles singer Don Henley sues for return of handwritten ‘Hotel California’ lyrics
Eagles singer Don Henley filed a lawsuit in New York on Friday seeking the return of his handwritten notes and song lyrics from the band’s hit “Hotel California” album. The civil complaint filed in Manhattan federal court comes after prosecutors in March abruptly dropped criminal charges midway through a trial against three collectibles experts accused of scheming to sell the documents. The Eagles co-founder has maintained the pages were stolen and had vowed to pursue a lawsuit when the criminal case was dropped against rare books dealer Glenn Horowitz, former Rock & Roll Hall of Fame curator Craig Inciardi and rock memorabilia seller Edward Kosinski.
Evening Standard
Jay Slater's family 'heartbroken' as search for missing teenager in Tenerife called off by police
Civil Guard say the almost two-week search for the missing British teenager has been brought to an end, but their investigation remains open
People
Man Kills Grandfather Before Sending Disturbing Text to Roommate and Fatally Shooting Himself in State Park
Andrew Vahey, 24, and his grandfather, Joseph Deponceau, 80, were arguing over the family house and "parking on the grass" in the weeks before the tragedy, say police
BBC
Supreme Court casts doubt on hundreds of Jan 6 cases
The court narrows the use of an obstruction charge brought against hundreds of people over the 2021 Capitol riot.
Associated Press
Supreme Court rejects Trump ally Steve Bannon’s bid to delay prison sentence
The Supreme Court on Friday rejected a bid to delay a prison sentence for longtime Trump ally Steve Bannon as he appeals his conviction for defying a subpoena in the congressional investigation into the U.S. Capitol insurrection. Bannon filed an emergency appeal after a judge ordered him to report to prison July 1 for a four-month sentence for defying a subpoena from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack. The appeal was originally directed to Chief Justice John Roberts, who oversees such requests from Washington.
The Hill
Two US service members charged with sexual assault in Japan
Two U.S. members of the armed services have been accused of sexual assault in Japan, spurring Japanese officials to speak out against what they have called troubling behavior. One U.S. airman is charged with sexually assaulting a teenage girl in December while this month a Marine was accused of assaulting a woman and attempting to…

Latest stories