Hunter Biden, the vice president’s son, has been kicked out of the Navy for drug use.

Hunter reportedly tested positive for cocaine last year, after beginning the process of joining the military in 2012. He was subsequently discharged from the Navy Reserve, where he served as an ensign in a public affairs unit based in Norfolk, Va.

Hunter is a lawyer by training who has worked as a lobbyist and currently serves as a managing partner at an investment firm. He began the process of joining the military in 2012, when he was 42.

In 2013, Mr. Biden was commissioned an ensign through the Direct Commission Officer Program, which each year selects a small number of applicants with civilian skills applicable to military needs. He received a waiver for his age and a second waiver for a drug-related incident in his youth, according to multiple news reports.

In June of last year, Biden failed a urinalysis after reporting to his Norfolk unit. He was formally discharged this past February.

“It was the honor of my life to serve in the U.S. Navy, and I deeply regret and am embarrassed that my actions led to my administrative discharge,” he said in a statement.

Hunter’s elder brother, Beau Biden, also a lawyer, joined the Delaware Army National Guard in 2003 as a member of the Judge Advocate General’s Corps. He was subsequently promoted to major and served a tour of duty in Iraq in 2008-2009.

Currently, Beau Biden is Delaware’s attorney general. He was elected to that post in 2006.

Ironically, Hunter’s father, Joe Biden does not have a soft-on-drugs reputation. He is seen in the White
House as someone arguing against wider legalization of marijuana.

The vice president’s office declined to comment.

The Navy said Mr. Biden met all of the criteria for a direct commission, but declined to provide any details of why he was discharged.

“Like other junior officers, the details of Ens. Biden’s discharge are not releasable due to the Privacy Act,” said Cmdr. Ryan Perry, a Navy spokesman.