Hunter Biden says he won’t back down from cage fight with Don Jr. and Eric Trump
Former President Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden said he is “100% prepared” for a potential cage match with President Donald Trump’s sons.
A federal judge has awarded Hunter Biden $1.7 million in punitive damages in a defamation lawsuit against former Overstock.com CEO Patrick Byrne, ruling that Byrne made false claims about Biden’s alleged involvement in a bribery scheme with Iran, The Guardian and The Hill reported.
U.S. District Judge Steven Wilson of the Central District of California issued the ruling Friday, finding Byrne acted in an “intentional misrepresentation” and “conscious disregard” of Biden’s rights. The judge also awarded Biden $1 in nominal damages and ordered Byrne to pay nearly $35,000 in court penalties.
The lawsuit, filed by Biden in 2023, centers on Byrne’s interviews and online claims that Biden solicited $800 million in bribes from Iran while his father, former President Joe Biden, was in office. Byrne claimed that Hunter Biden offered to help persuade his father to unfreeze billions of dollars in Iranian assets and take a more flexible approach in nuclear negotiations.
Mr. Biden has denied the allegations and accused Mr. Byrne of deliberately spreading false information aimed at damaging his reputation. The case was scheduled for a jury trial, but Wilson entered a default judgment because Byrne failed to appear, and the judge said Byrne had repeatedly failed to comply with court orders and delayed proceedings.
Judge says Byrne lacks evidence for claim
Mr. Wilson said in his ruling that Mr. Byrne claimed to have believed the allegations because Iranian officials claimed they had shared the information.
The judge rejected that explanation, writing that Byrne had not presented evidence showing the official had direct knowledge of his alleged contacts with Biden. Mr Wilson said Mr Byrne had failed to produce any documents or other evidence to support his claims and it was found there was “sufficient evidence” that parts of Mr Byrne’s account were fabricated.
The judge also found that Mr. Byrne continued to promote the claims after Mr. Biden filed his lawsuit, including by encouraging others to spread the claims online.
Wilson wrote that Byrne’s actions went beyond ordinary negligence and amounted to intentional misconduct.
Biden lawyer praises ruling as ‘totally justified’
Hunter Biden’s attorney, Brian Sullivan, said the ruling clears his client of what he described as extremely serious charges.
“This is a complete vindication for Patrick Byrne’s false statements about Hunter Biden,” Sullivan said in a statement. “As the court found, Byrne had no basis whatsoever to suggest that Hunter was involved with Iran.”
In a follow-up statement to USA TODAY, Sullivan said Byrne had been using his public platform for years to spread allegations against Biden.
“For three years, Patrick Byrne has used his national platform to accuse Hunter Biden of treason and link him to the terrorist attacks that killed more than 1,000 people,” Sullivan said. “Yesterday, a federal judge appointed by President Reagan and who has served for 40 years found that all of these claims were fabricated by someone the court described as unreliable and someone who would make up far-fetched stories to draw attention to himself.”
Mr Sullivan added that the damages awarded by the court were only the beginning of possible consequences if Mr Byrne repeated similar claims.
“The judgment is $1.7 million in punitive damages, which is a minimum, not a maximum, of the amount Mr. Byrne may owe for his actions,” Sullivan said. “If Mr Byrne chooses to repeat either, we will return to court.”
Byrne’s history as a Trump ally
Byrne, who founded Overstock.com and served as its CEO until 2019, became a prominent supporter of former President Donald Trump and challenged the results of the 2020 election, The Hill reported.
He resigned from Overstock following reports about his relationship with Maria Butina, who was later convicted in the United States of acting as an unregistered agent for Russia.
Reporter Anthony Thompson can be reached at ajthompson@usatodayco.com or X @athompsonUSAT.
