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Hunter Biden, son of US President Biden, and his wife Melissa appear in court for a criminal gun case in their hometown of Wilmington, Delaware | Reuters

On August 2, a U.S. federal judge said on Friday that Hunter Biden, the son of current U.S. President Biden, will be sentenced in Delaware on November 13 for gun crimes. This is eight days before the 2024 presidential election voting day.

Hunter Biden, President Biden's only surviving son, was found guilty in June by a jury in U.S. District Court in Wilmington of three criminal counts related to his purchase and possession of a revolver while under illegal drug control.

Hunter, 54, is the first child of a sitting U.S. president to be convicted of a crime.

US media reported that Hunter Biden could face up to 25 years in prison, but according to federal sentencing guidelines, Judge Marilyn Noreika may give him a lighter sentence because Hunter is a first offender.

Hunter Biden faces another criminal trial in September in federal court in Los Angeles, where he is charged with nine counts stemming from allegations that he failed to pay at least $1.4 million in taxes over several years.

On July 18, Hunter Biden's lawyers asked judges in the Delaware and Los Angeles cases to dismiss the charges.

In a motion filed with the court, Hunter Biden's lawyers cited a new ruling by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, questioning whether the U.S. Department of Justice has the authority to appoint a special prosecutor, which led a federal court in Florida to dismiss former President Trump's criminal confidential document case.

In August 2023, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Delaware Attorney David Weiss as special prosecutor to investigate Hunter Biden and prosecute him if necessary.

Garland also appointed Jack Smith as special counsel to investigate Trump's handling of classified documents after leaving the White House and Trump's efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election he lost to President Biden.

Trump's case of hiding confidential documents was dismissed by the court, which may help Biden's son's tax avoidance case

Smith has been indicted by grand juries in two criminal cases against Trump and is appealing a decision by a federal judge in Florida last month to toss out the classified documents. Trial judge Aileen Cannon ruled that Smith's appointment as special prosecutor was unconstitutional, citing a recent opinion by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thomas in her ruling.

Judge Cannon and Judge Marilyn Noreika were both appointed during Trump's presidency.

Hunter Biden's legal troubles and his tainted past have drawn continued attention from the U.S. media as his father, Biden, is running for re-election.

But now, President Biden has announced his withdrawal from the race on July 21, greatly weakening the role of his son Hunter Biden's involvement as a political weapon.

On the day Biden dropped out of the race, he expressed his support for Vice President Kamala Harris to succeed him against Republican presidential candidate Trump.

On Friday, Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Jaime Harrison said Harris had won enough delegates to secure her the party's nomination, though the results have yet to be officially announced.

The US Democratic Party will officially announce the election results next Monday (August 5).

Biden announces support for Harris for president after dropping out of race

In addition to the criminal election interference case in Washington, D.C., Trump has been separately charged in state court in Atlanta with crimes related to his efforts to overturn his loss to President Biden in the 2020 Georgia election.

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