Some lawmakers say Hunter Biden gun charge should be prosecuted more often
NBCJun 18
Hunter Biden Drops Request for Gun Retrial
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The Facts
Hunter Biden's legal team dropped a request for a new gun trial on Tuesday, conceding in court filings that they had misunderstood a procedural technicality in their motion last month.
Attorneys for US Pres. Joe Biden's son had called for his conviction on three felony gun-related charges to be "vacated" over claims that the trial started before a circuit court formally issued a mandate denying his pretrial appeals.
The Spin
Republican narrative
Another day, another embarrassment for Hunter Biden. As if his historic felony conviction on gun-related crimes wasn't enough humiliation, now his legal team had to drop a call for a new trial because their motion was meritless and based on a laughable claim about missing mandates, exposing their misunderstanding of appellate practice as well as their failure to read court orders.
Democratic narrative
Hunter Biden fell down the dark hole of drug addiction, the consequences of which led to criminal actions that tainted both his life and the reputation of his very famous family. His dad also walked the fine line between supporting his son and upholding the rule of law, which is why a jury found him guilty. With Hunter now judged by both a jury and the court of public opinion, it's time for Americans to put partisanship aside and focus on the tragic human aspect of this story.
Cynical narrative
While it may be difficult, anyone who believes in the constitutional right to bear arms, whether they like the president or not, should be upset about this case. When America was founded, both alcohol and opium were known substances, yet no laws prohibited users of those substances from possessing guns. If the justice system can violate the gun rights of the president's son, what do you think they'd be willing to do to an average citizen?
