Hunter Biden requests telephone hearing in paternity case

INDEPENDENCE COUNTY, Ark. (KAIT) - A circuit judge has denied Hunter Biden's request to not have to appear in person at the deposition and the pretrial over his paternity case.

According to a motion filed Tuesday around 12:25 p.m., Biden’s attorney sought a continuance of the pending hearing.

DNA tests determined with “scientific certainty” that he fathered Lunden Roberts’ one-year-old baby. She and the child live in Independence County.

Last week, Region 8 News reported that Hunter Biden was asked to appear in person for a deposition on Wednesday, March 11.

However, in Tuesday’s filing, Biden cited several reasons he wanted to video-conference the deposition.

He first listed his wife’s due date that’s in approximately 2 weeks.

Despite Arkansas not having a reported case of the coronavirus, Biden said it's unsafe for him to travel because of restrictions in place.

He also said this could expose his wife and unborn child to this virus and that's why a remote deposition is needed.

Biden’s lawyer also wrote that his client is under intense media scrutiny from President Donald Trump, Republican senators, and others who want former Vice President Joe Biden to fail in becoming the Democratic presidential candidate.

He also wanted to participate in a pre-trial hearing set for March 13 by telephone.

Following Biden's motion of continuance, Circuit Judge Holly Meyer issued another motion in Independence County Tuesday around 4:15 p.m.

Judge Meyer acknowledged that the notice of deposition for March 5 was not timely.

She also found that Roberts’ notice of deposition was not an attempt to harass, annoy or embarrass the defendant and was “issued in the normal course of litigation.”

However, she said that deposition was reset for March 11 or March 12, or both, if needed by the court.

She said this will help them prepare before Friday's pre-trial hearing.

In that same motion, she denied Biden’s request to set the deposition for April 1.

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