Hunter Biden's attempts to dismiss criminal gun charges against him in Delaware have been rejected by a federal appeals court panel.
A three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Philadelphia rejected his defunct plea deal and his claims that the case was tainted by "political bias."
The panel also added that Hunter could not appeal against the decision because it had not yet entered a final judgment in the case. Later on Thursday, a Trump-appointed trial judge, Maryellen Noreika, dismissed his remaining motion to dismiss the case on Second Amendment grounds.
The back-to-back orders clear the way for a trial to proceed next month. If it goes ahead, this will be the first time a sitting president's child is prosecuted.
Noreika, a Trump appointee who received huge bipartisan approval in the Senate confirmation process, had previously overseen Hunter's unsuccessful plea deal hearing last summer. She also refused to dismiss the gun charges against him last month.
These rulings also mark a victory for special counsel David Weiss, who is prosecuting Hunter in two separate criminal cases and is facing strong resistance from his legal team.
Weiss' legal team was successful in arguing that the appellate court did not have jurisdiction to review whether Judge Noreika had made any errors in rejecting Hunter's motions to dismiss the gun case.
Prosecutors allege that Hunter unlawfully acquired and possessed a revolver in 2018, violating federal law, as he was reportedly using illicit drugs at the time. He has pleaded not guilty to all three felony counts.
Hunter's legal team claims that the charges infringe upon his Second Amendment rights and that "possessing an unloaded gun for 11 days was not a threat to public safety." The gun trial is scheduled to start in early June, unless the involved parties reach a plea agreement or another resolution to settle the case, which remains a possibility.
A separate tax trial alleging that Hunter earned millions of dollars through deals in Ukraine, China, and other overseas transactions is also set to start later in June. He has pleaded not guilty to all nine charges in the tax case.
Reacting to the appeals court ruling, Hunter's lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said: "In reviewing the panel's decision, we believe the issues involved are too important and further review of our request is appropriate."
