Hunter Biden filed documents on Monday seeking a new trial after his conviction on three felonies on June 11, 2024. He argued that the decision should be vacated since the trial began before an appeal for an earlier motion was concluded. Biden also claimed that one of the laws he was prosecuted under, §922(g)(3), is unconstitutional and that the court should order an acquittal.

On the first, Biden argues that the district court should not have commenced proceedings on June 3, 2024. This is because the Third Circuit had yet to issue a mandate pursuant to previous appeals it dismissed. Therefore, the district court lacked jurisdiction over the matter, Biden said. His filing said, “any district court action after it has been divested of jurisdiction by an appeal must be vacated.” He emphasized this as a principle of “black-letter law” which cannot be cured by the Third Circuit ultimately issuing a mandate.

On the second motion, Biden claims that his prosecution under one of the laws in question, §922(g)(3), is unconstitutional. The provision holds that anyone who is “an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance” is forbidden from owning a gun. Biden argues that this provision contradicts with the recent Supreme Court Decision in U.S. v. Rahimi. There, the Supreme Court affirmed a “presumption against restrictions on keeping and bearing firearms” which is a “central feature of the Second Amendment.” It went to discuss how a firearm limitation is legitimate if it “allows the Government to disarm individuals who present a credible threat to the physical safety of others.” In response to this, Biden contends that he was not violent, suggesting that the justification from U.S. v. Rahimi would not apply.

Biden, son of US President Joe Biden, was found guilty of lying about his drug use while purchasing a firearm earlier this month. He was convicted of three felonies: making a false statement in connection with the acquisition of a firearm under 18 U.S.C. §922(a)(6) and 924(a)(2), making a false statement with respect to information to be kept in records under §924(a)(1)(A), and possession of firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance under §922(g)(3) and §924(a)(2).

A sentencing date has yet to be set for the younger Biden.