WILMINGTON, Del. — Hunter Biden’s eldest daughter Naomi took her father’s stand Friday, telling the court how her father appeared to have taken control of his drug use in the months before prosecutors say he lied on a government background check form.
“He seemed the clearest I had seen him since my uncle died, and he just seemed really wonderful,” she said of visiting him during a stint in rehab in Los Angeles with her then-boyfriend Peter Neal.
Hunter Biden wiped away tears as she testified that she was proud of him.
Naomi Biden told the court she saw her father again a few months later in New York when he came to pick up his truck after she and Neal had borrowed it.
“He seemed great. He seemed hopeful,” the younger Biden said of the visit, which came sometime after her father purchased the gun at the center of the case against him.
Her memories became more complicated due to her father’s defense when she was cross-examined. Biden is accused of illegally purchasing a Colt Cobra pistol and lying on a federal form about his drug use. His brother’s widow, with whom he subsequently had a romantic relationship Beau Biden‘s death, testified about finding the gun in a truck — the defendant’s — littered with drug residue before throwing it away. Biden has pleaded not guilty to three charges.
President Joe Biden said in an interview that he would not pardon his son, who faces a prison sentence of up to 25 years if convicted.
Behind the defendant was first lady Jill Biden, who had flown from France and will return to Europe on Saturday. Hunter held her hand as he left the court after his daughter’s testimony, with his wife Melissa Cohen-Biden walking behind him.
Before the government rested its case Friday morning, a drug enforcement agent testified in court that texts from Hunter Biden presented by prosecutors were related to drug use and deals, and a forensic chemist testified about the small amount of white powder found in the baggie. in which Biden kept his firearm.
Court adjourned early Friday after the judge sent the jury home.
Here’s what you missed on day 5 of the Hunter Biden trial:
Naomi’s testimony
Hunter Biden visited his daughter in New York in mid-October after using his truck to move her boyfriend into her apartment. Naomi Biden told the court she likely saw her father only once in the three days he was there and acknowledged she had difficulty coordinating with him, which she attributed in part to her commute in Brooklyn.
At one point, prosecutor Leo asked Wise about a late-night conversation with her father, who texted her at 2 a.m. asking “where are the keys to the truck?” and “can you take Peter to 57th and 5th, and shall I trade cars with him?” Hunter Biden had used Joe Biden’s Cadillac to make the trip to New York and they were going to swap, Naomi explained in court, referring to her grandfather as “Pop.”
“Straight away?” She had texted her father at the time, but received no response. She said she never saw him use drugs.
Later, Wise asked Naomi about other texts from her father during his time in New York and how she seemed dismayed that she couldn’t reach him.
“I’m really sorry dad, I can’t handle this,” her text read after she sent him a sad face emoji. ‘I don’t know what to say. I just want to hang out with you.”
She also said she saw no drug residue in the car and no drug paraphernalia when she picked up the car and returned it to him.
In what seemed to be a particularly painful moment, Wise asked Naomi if her father had told her he was meeting “someone named Franky” or if that person was coming to his hotel room.
“I don’t remember,” she said.
A former girlfriend of Biden’s told the court in earlier testimony how early in their relationship she was introduced to someone with the same name who sold him drugs in New York.
As Naomi Biden left the courtroom, she wiped away a tear.
The defense chose not to put Hunter Biden’s uncle, James Biden, on the stand after a lunch break.
The prosecutor dropped his case
The government rested its case Friday after presenting evidence from several witnesses who testified to Biden’s drug use, including an ex-girlfriend and his brother Beau’s widow.
On Thursday, Hallie Biden, the prosecution’s star witness, testified about Biden’s drug use and about the day she remembered finding his gun, throwing it away and then going through the trash where she dropped it.
Hunter Biden’s attorneys said Friday they will consider the decision on whether to put him on the stand when court resumes Monday. The defense also said it would file a written motion Friday afternoon calling for an acquittal, arguing the case is unconstitutional under the Second Amendment.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
