Hunter Biden's ex-wife Kathleen Buhle takes stand at his criminal trial and recalls how she discovered he was on drugs after finding his crack pipe on their porch
- Kathleen Buhle recalled finding ex-husband Hunter's crack pipe on their porch
- She told the jury he admitted to his drug use after she confronted him in 2015
- READ MORE: Hunter Biden's wife Melissa Cohen shakes her head as his laptop is revealed at gun trial... and jury is shown photos of him 'weighing crack'
They say hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, so when his ex-wife, Kathleen Buhle, took the stand in Wilmington, Delaware as a witness for the prosecution Hunter Biden could be forgiven for bracing himself.
Dressed in neat blue pants suit and white shirt, Kathleen was the image of calm as she told the court how she discovered her then husband was using drugs when she found a crack pipe in an ashtray on their porch on July 3, 2015.
It was the day after their 12th anniversary and two days before she kicked him out of the house for good. Kathleen told the court she confronted him and 'he acknowledged smoking crack.'
Even before she found the incriminating paraphernalia, Kathleen admitted, she had suspected her husband was using drugs given that he had earlier been kicked out of the Navy for testing positive for cocaine.
'I was definitely worried and scared,' she said.
Hunter Biden's former wife, Kathleen Buhle is seen departing the federal courthouse after taking the stand at his criminal trial on Wednesday
Kathleen, 55, filed for divorce from Hunter in December 2016 after 24 years of marriage, told the court when she first found a crack pipe in their home and how she would hide drugs in his car from their daughters
Asked under cross examination if she had ever actually witnessed Hunter using drugs she admitted 'no' but on redirect, when asked how she knew that he was, she said bluntly: 'He told me.'
She added: 'I assumed he was continuing to use when I would find the pipes in the car,' an occurrence she said had happened, 'about a dozen times.'
Court is an all too familiar meeting point for these two former spouses with Kathleen still pursuing Hunter for $2.9million in unpaid alimony in a case that continues to simmer through the DC courts.
As he watched his ex take the stand, Hunter may well have wished he'd just ponied up.
Instead, as recently as last year, her attorneys stated that he continued to inflict enormous 'expense and emotional toll' on the woman who bore him three children.
Kathleen, 55, filed for divorce from Hunter in December 2016 after 24 years of marriage.
And however anodyne the grounds - 'irreconcilable differences between the parties concerning Defendant's conduct' – the divorce would prove one of the dirtiest in DC.
The move came a year after reports that the couple had formally separated in October 2015, three months after she allegedly kicked him out of their home on July 5, 2015, because of 'his conduct the night before.'
Kathleen didn't give any detail of what that conduct might be in her initial divorce filing, but later documents shed some light citing 'drug use and infidelity' as major motivators in the split.
Hunter, who is on trial for lying about his drug addiction on a federal form to purchase a gun, was snapped arriving at a federal court in Delaware with his wife Melissa Cohen on Wednesday morning
The mom-of-three who now goes by her maiden name Buhle, was revealed to be pursuing her ex-husband for over $1.7million in alimony, legal fees, and interest following their 2017 divorce
Kathleen and Hunter share three daughters, (left to right) Finnegan, 23, Naomi, 30, and Maisy, 22
Several months after filing for divorce, Kathleen returned to the court to ask that they freeze their marital assets and have, 'all funds earned prior to a full and final resolution…placed into an escrow.'
From that, the motion asked, that Kathleen receive an allocation of $20,000 a month while Hunter receive just $5,000.
The February 2017 filing came hot on the heels of Kathleen discovering that Hunter 'was in possession of a large diamond, on information and belief worth approximately $80,000.'
Hunter initially denied owning the rock when asked to place it in a safety deposit box accessible only to him and his ex but subsequently admitted to having it.
In the February documents Kathleen's attorneys stated that Hunter was the sole provider throughout the marriage and had been sending a monthly stipend of $17,000 to Kathleen and their three daughters – Naomi, Finnegan and Maisy.
But, they claimed, in 2016 that amount suddenly dwindled to $7,500 though Hunter's spending on himself and his 'hobbies' continued apace.
According to Kathleen, while Hunter neglected his estranged wife and children's needs, he had nothing but deep pockets for 'drugs, alcohol, prostitution, strip clubs and gifts for women with whom he had sexual relations.'
Barely two months after their divorce filing and Hunter had maxed out their credit cards, run up a host of other expenses including taxes of $313,970 and maxed out Kathleen's patience.
According to her Hunter's 'conduct creates situations that are unsafe or traumatic of the parties and their children and his judgment, is frequently impaired.'
The 12 jurors in the case have been shown video of a shirtless Hunter smoking a pipe
Buhle, who was photographed leaving the federal courthouse on Tuesday, made no secret of her contempt for Hunter's alleged wild lifestyle, according to previously reported divorce filings
First Lady Jill Biden was seen returning to the federal courthouse on Wednesday for the third day of trial. She has attended proceedings to support her stepson since the trial began on Monday
In the eviscerating motion Kathleen pointed out that while Hunter spent generously on himself and his 'interests' he 'has not provided sufficient support to meet the needs of [herself] of her children.'
Perhaps unnecessarily given the tone and content of the filing Kathleen's attorney assured the court, 'there is no expectation or reasonable expectation of a reconciliation between the parties.'
The motion was filed just days before it was revealed that Hunter was dating his brother Beau's widow, Hallie – a relationship destined to end in a torrent of desperate texts, addiction and recrimination. And another woman set to testify for the prosecution.
Kathleen's latest pursuit for the alimony she claims she is due began with a court filing in 2019. According to their separation agreement obtained by Axios, Hunter was meant to pay Kathleen $37,000 a month and 50 per cent of any earning – the equivalent of more than $875,000 annually.
But Kathleen and her lawyers maintain that Hunter failed to stump up the money owed in 2017 and 2018, a period in which they allege he made more than $2million a year. And according to Kathleen the payments stopped entirely when she filed her lawsuit.
