A disciplinary office in Washington, D.C., is seeking the suspension of Hunter Biden‘s legal license after he was convicted last week on federal gun charges.
The Office of the Disciplinary Counsel, which serves as the prosecutor in disciplinary cases for members of the bar in D.C., sent a letter Monday to the D.C. Court of Appeals with a proposed order for his suspension, citing rules governing attorney suspensions following a felony conviction.
Proposed language for the order urged the appeals court to deem that the president’s son “is suspended immediately from the practice of law in the District of Columbia pending resolution of this matter,” after a jury in Delaware found him guilty on three felony gun charges.
The proposed order, which says Hunter Biden has been a member of the D.C. bar since 2007, would also instruct the Board on Professional Responsibility “to institute a formal proceeding to determine the nature of the offense and whether it involves moral turpitude.”
According to D.C. Bar rules, any felony is considered a “serious crime,” and the court is responsible for issuing an order “immediately suspending the attorney,” regardless of any pending appeal, while the board initiates any disciplinary proceedings. But the court also has the discretion to waive a suspension “when it appears in the interest of justice to do so.”
Abbe Lowell, an attorney for Hunter Biden, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday night.
Hunter Biden, who pleaded not guilty in the case, was convicted on all three charges tied to possession of a gun that he purchased in 2018 while using narcotics.
Two of the counts carry maximum prison sentences of 10 years. The third count has a maximum sentence of five years. Each count also carries a maximum fine of $250,000. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.
Hunter Biden has also pleaded not guilty to tax charges in a trial that’s now set to begin Sept. 5.
