The prosecution of Hunter Biden on federal firearms charges stems from a form that would-be gun buyers must fill out when purchasing a weapon from a licensed gun business
The prosecution of Hunter Biden on federal firearms charges stems from a 7-page form that would-be gun buyers must fill out when purchasing a weapon from a licensed gun business. The form includes standard questions about things that would disqualify someone from legal gun ownership, like previous felony convictions, mental health problems or illegal drug use.
The drug question has landed Biden in court — prosecutors say he lied on the paperwork for a gun purchase in 2018 when he said he wasn’t using drugs. Biden’s attorneys say he didn’t consider himself a drug addict when he purchased the weapon.
While people are sometimes prosecuted for allegedly lying on the form, experts say it usually happens as part of a larger case involving more serious conduct, and cases like the one brought against Biden are rare.
Here, some things to know about the form and related weapons charges:
The Firearms Transaction Record, also known as ATF Form 4473, is essentially an application to buy a gun from a licensed dealer. It’s used for a quick background check to make sure the buyer isn’t legally prohibited from owning a weapon. There are nine items on the form that can disqualify a buyer, and most of them are easy to check, said Jacob Charles, an associate professor at Pepperdine University’s Caruso School of Law.
If a person has been convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year of imprisonment, or has been involuntarily committed to a mental institution, those records will show up in the background check.
