4 big takeaways from day 4 of Hunter Biden's federal gun trial, Hallie Biden takes stand
WILMINGTON, Delaware -- Hallie Biden, the widow of President Joe Biden's late son Beau Biden, testified as a key government witness at Hunter Biden's federal gun trial on Thursday, recounting in excruciating detail the "terrible experience" of Hunter Biden's drug addiction in the months leading up to her discovery of a firearm in his vehicle.
Prosecutors hope the testimony of Hallie Biden, who was Hunter Biden's romantic partner at the time, attested to Hunter Biden's drug use in October of 2018, when prosecutors say Hunter Biden lied on an ATF form when he said he wasn't using drugs at the time he purchased the firearm. The president's son has denied the charges.
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Prosecutors, who later called several witnesses to testify about the recovery of the gun after Hallie Biden threw it away in a dumpster, plan to call two additional witnesses on Friday before resting their case.
Here are the four big takeaways from Day 4 of the trial.
Hallie Biden recounts finding the gun
When Hallie Biden found a Colt Cobra revolver, a speedloader and bullets in Hunter Biden's vehicle, on Oct. 23, 2018, she said she "panicked."
"I wanted to get rid of them," she told the jury.
Hallie Biden, who offered a detailed account of the day she found and later discarded the weapon, testified that along with the gun she found "remnants" of crack in Hunter Biden's vehicle -- but acknowledged under cross-examination that the drug traces could have been there for weeks or months.
When Hunter Biden learned that Hallie Biden disposed of the weapon, he was "angry," she said.
"It's hard to believe anyone is that stupid," Hunter Biden texted her.
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"I'm sorry," Hallie texted Biden at one point. "I just want you to be safe. That was not safe ... and it was open unlocked and windows down and the kids search your car."
Jurors were shown several surveillance videos of Hallie Biden throwing the gun away and going into the grocery store, then returning later that morning to search for the firearm.
Hallie Biden describes Hunter's crack addiction
Hallie Biden testified that Hunter smoked crack and exhibited changes in behavior -- including being "agitated" and "high-strung" -- but also spoke of his ability to "function" on the drug.
He used it "frequently -- daily," she said.
Hallie herself at one point became addicted to the drug after Hunter Biden introduced her to it.
"It was a terrible experience I went through," she said. "I'm embarrassed and ashamed and I regret that period of my life."
But under cross-examination from defense attorney Abbe Lowell, Hallie Biden testified that for most of the month of October 2018 she did not see Hunter abusing drugs or alcohol -- potentially undercutting the prosecution's contention that Hunter Biden was using drugs at the time he purchased the gun on Oct. 12.
Hallie also testified that Hunter was prone to lie about where he was, and that their relationship became "more tense" after she discovered the gun.
"It's all kind of vague," Hallie said of her memories of that time.
Witnesses describe gun's recovery
Former Delaware State Police lieutenant Millard Greer described tracking down the gun after Hallie Biden had thrown it in the trash outside the supermarket.
Greer said he reviewed surveillance footage, interviewed witnesses, and ultimately retrieved the weapon from Edward Banner, who was known to "rummage through trash."
Greer said Banner had placed the firearm in a sock along with a leather pouch containing the gun.
Banner, called as the government's last witness of the day, corroborated much of Greer's account, testifying he'd found the gun in a trash can outside the grocery store, stored it on a top shelf at home, and ultimately turned it over to Greer.
Government to rest its case on Friday
Prosecutors said before court concluded on Thursday that they have two witnesses left -- a DEA drug specialist and an FBI chemist -- and that they intended to rest their case on Friday morning.
Defense counsel said they would call two or three witnesses and would likely rest their case by the end of the day on Monday. As Lowell previously suggested, he may call James Biden, the president's brother, and Naomi Biden, the president's eldest granddaughter.
Lowell said he was still unsure whether Hunter Biden would testify in his own defense.
