First Witness in Hunter Biden Trial: Erika Jensen

Prosecutor opens by saying 'no one is above the law' no matter 'what your name is'
By Polly Davis Doig,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 4, 2024 10:30 AM CDT
First Witness in Hunter Biden Trial: Erika Jensen
Hunter Biden arrives at federal court, Tuesday, June 4, 2024, in Wilmington, Delaware.   (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

With a jury now seated, Hunter Biden's trial on three felony firearms charges got underway Tuesday in Delaware with first lady Jill Biden again in attendance, along with his sister, Ashley Biden, and wife, Melissa Cohen Biden. A look:

  • The prosecution: NBC News reports that prosecutor Derek Hines told the courtroom during his opening statement that "no one is above the law. It doesn't matter who you are, or what your name is." Hines outlined Hunter Biden's lie in checking a box on an application to buy a gun that said he wasn't a drug user, per the AP. "No one is allowed to lie on a federal form like that, even Hunter Biden," Hines said.

  • The defense: Lawyer Abbe Lowell said that "Hunter bought a small handgun," per NBC. "It was never loaded. He never used it." Lowell said that prosecutors have to prove that Hunter Biden "knowingly violated the law."
  • On deck as first witness: FBI Special Agent Erika Jensen, who CBS News reports is expected to testify about Biden's texts, some of which depict illegal drugs. She's also expected to tackle sections of Biden's memoir, Beautiful Things.
  • Other witnesses for prosecution: Kathleen Buhle, Hunter Biden's ex-wife; former girlfriend Zoe Kestan; sister-in-law Hallie Biden, with whom Hunter Biden had a relationship; and Gordon Cleveland, an employee at StarQuest Shooters who took Hunter Biden's gun application.
  • The jury is already down one: One juror dropped out overnight, citing an hour commute and her unemployment as reasons she couldn't serve, NBC reports.
(More Hunter Biden trial stories.)

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