Hunter Biden’s family weathers a public and expansive airing in federal court of his drug addiction

Colleen Long, Darlene Superville and Claudia Lauer, Associated Press

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — In a span of little than 48 hours this past week, first woman Jill Biden shuttled from a Normandy ceremonial marking nan 80th day of nan D-Day penetration successful France to nan beforehand statement of a Delaware courtroom, wherever Hunter Biden is connected proceedings successful a weapon case, and past backmost to Paris for an elaborate authorities sojourn astatine Élysée Palace.

“Here we are again,” nan first woman said pinch a laughter arsenic she and President Joe Biden were greeted by French President Emanuel Macron and his wife, Brigette, astatine nan palace connected Saturday, nan ray remark an oblique motion to her transatlantic commute.

It was a manifestation of nan awesome lengths to which nan Biden family has gone to support Hunter Biden arsenic he stands proceedings successful Wilmington, Delaware, accused of lying connected a national weapon acquisition shape erstwhile he said he did not person a supplier problem. Jill Biden has been a regular beingness successful nan courtroom, buttressed by a rotating formed of different family members.

“The backmost and forth, nan push and pull, of family responsibilities, of first woman duties, of her career, of nan run — that’s conscionable who she is,” said Elizabeth Alexander, nan first lady’s communications director.

Every family wrestles pinch individual challenges, and politicians are often near to navigate those dynamics successful public. But nan very expansive airing successful tribunal of tawdry specifications surrounding Hunter Biden’s addiction – successful nan glare of an predetermination twelvemonth — is of an bid of greater magnitude. And nan president’s family has shown a determination to guarantee Hunter Biden does not upwind it alone.

The proceedings resumes Monday. Hunter Biden has pleaded not blameworthy to nan charges, but he does not contradict a supplier problem. His memoir, “Beautiful Things,” is each astir hitting bottommost aft his relative Beau’s decease successful 2015 from cancer. But his lawyers opportunity he did not see himself to beryllium an “addict” astatine nan clip he filled retired nan weapon acquisition shape successful 2018 to bargain a revolver.

BOTH PRESIDENT AND A DAD

Joe Biden has steered clear of nan courtroom and said small astir nan case, wary of creating an belief of interfering successful a criminal matter brought by his ain Justice Department. But nan president has agelong walked nan statement betwixt nationalist servant and father.

At conscionable 30, nan Democrat was sworn successful arsenic Delaware’s inferior legislator from a infirmary room wherever his young sons were recuperating from a car mishap that killed his woman and babe daughter.

In grainy black-and-white newsreels, Biden tin been seen holding 3-year-old Hunter arsenic nan caller legislator takes nan oath and 4-year-old Beau watches from a infirmary bed. Joe Biden pledged past that if location was ever a conflict betwixt “my being a bully begetter and being a bully senator,” he would resign.

The president did put retired a little written connection arsenic Hunter Biden’s proceedings began.

“As nan president, I don’t and won’t remark connected pending national cases, but arsenic a dad, I person boundless emotion for my son, assurance successful him, and respect for his strength,” he said. “Our family has been done a batch together, and Jill and I are going to proceed to beryllium location for Hunter and our family pinch our emotion and support.”

The lawsuit followed him to Normandy nonetheless, wherever Biden was asked successful an ABC question and reply whether he thought his boy would get a adjacent proceedings and whether nan president would norm retired pardoning his boy if location was a blameworthy verdict.

Biden answered pinch a terse “yes” connected some matters.

SHOW OF SUPPORT

Over nan trial’s first week, Jill Biden was successful tribunal 4 days retired of five, missing only Thursday owed to nan D-Day events. Others who person taken seats successful nan courtroom astatine various points are Hunter’s sister Ashley, aunts Bonny Jacobs and Valerie Owens and his wife, Melissa Cohen Biden.

The first woman has leaned complete nan tribunal railing to clasp Hunter, who has called her mom since she joined Joe Biden successful 1977. She has walked manus successful manus pinch him retired of nan courtroom. She has listened to hours of testimony.

Hunter has not made it easy for his family, and nan grounds successful nan lawsuit has been a highly individual circuit of his mistakes and supplier use, immoderate benignant of nightmare type of “This is Your Life.”

Jurors person listened to hours of grounds from his ex-wife, a erstwhile woman and his brother’s widow, who betwixt them painted a image of portion nine trips, infidelity, habitual ace usage and their grounded efforts to thief him get clean. Jurors saw images of nan president’s boy bare-chested and disheveled successful a filthy room and half-naked holding ace pipes. And they watched a video of his ace cocaine being weighed connected a scale.

Federal prosecutors person based on nan grounds was basal to beryllium to jurors that Hunter Biden, 54, was successful nan throes of addiction erstwhile he bought nan weapon and truthful lied erstwhile he checked “no” connected nan shape that asked whether he was “an unlawful personification of, aliases addicted to” drugs.

On Friday, his eldest daughter, Naomi, 30, testified for nan defense, telling jurors a hopeful communicative astir really her begetter seemed to beryllium getting amended astir nan clip of nan weapon purchase.

“I told him I was truthful proud of him,” she said softly.

But past charismatic Leo Wise showed her texts that showed erratic behaviour during that aforesaid period. Her begetter did not respond to her connection for hours, past asked her astatine 2 a.m. whether her fellow could meet up to move cars.

“Right now?” she responded. “I’m really sorry dada I can’t return this.”

When she sewage disconnected nan stand, she stopped astatine nan defense table, pausing to hug her dada earlier she near nan courtroom.

By Friday afternoon, nan first woman was headed backmost to France for nan authorities dinner.

Her transcontinental flights underscore nan value of family to nan Bidens writ large, said Carl Sferrazza Anthony, an master connected first ladies and writer of “Camera Girl,” astir Jacqueline Kennedy.

“She understands that astatine nan extremity of nan time what matters is her boy and his well-being and knowing he has support and knowing, also, nan vulnerability of personification who has been successful recovery,” Anthony said.

A FAMILIAR STORY

Patrick Kennedy, a erstwhile congressman and starring sound connected intelligence wellness and addiction, said Hunter Biden’s communicative is truthful communal that he expected galore Americans would spot thing acquainted successful it, nevertheless disturbing aliases embarrassing it seems. Kennedy himself struggled pinch supplier addiction and is nan boy of a celebrated lawmaker, nan precocious Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass.

“The illness of addiction seems to beryllium what is connected proceedings here,” he said, arguing that a large portion of nan lawsuit is nan meaning of sobriety. Are you sober erstwhile you are not taking drugs? Or are you sober erstwhile location has been a profound displacement successful your reasoning that goes on pinch stopping nan drugs?

“Half opportunity it’s physical, and nan different half opportunity it’s intelligence — and truth is that it is both,” he said.

WHAT COMES NEXT

The proceedings is winding down. The defense is debating whether to telephone much witnesses connected Monday, including nan president’s relative James. After closing arguments, nan lawsuit will spell to nan jury.

But Hunter Biden’s ineligible problems will not extremity there. He faces a abstracted proceedings successful September successful California connected charges of failing to salary $1.4 cardinal successful taxes.

A plea woody had been negotiated past summertime that would person resolved some nan weapon and taxation matters, avoiding nan spectacle of a proceedings truthful adjacent to nan statesmanlike predetermination this November. But erstwhile U.S. District Court Judge Maryellen Noreika, who was nominated by erstwhile President Donald Trump, questioned aspects of nan deal, nan lawyers could not travel to a resolution. The woody fell apart.

Attorney General Merrick Garland past appointed nan lead investigator, erstwhile U.S. Attorney David Weiss of Delaware, arsenic a typical counsel successful August. A period later, Hunter Biden was indicted.

Hunter Biden has based on he is being unfairly targeted by nan Justice Department aft Republicans decried nan now-defunct plea woody arsenic typical curen for nan Democratic president’s son.

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Long and Superville reported from Washington. AP White House Correspondent Zeke Miller successful Paris, and Associated Press writers Randall Chase, Mike Catalini and Michael Kunzelman contributed to this report.