A federal judge in Los Angeles has declined Hunter Biden’s plea to dismiss tax charges against him. The son of President Joe Biden is alleged to have evaded paying $1.4 million in taxes over four years, supposedly while indulging in a luxurious lifestyle. U.S. District Judge Marc Scarsi dismissed eight separate motions, including claims that federal prosecutors yielded to Republican pressure and that a prior plea deal provided him with immunity.
In December 2023, the son of the president sought to have gun charges against him dismissed by a federal judge in Delaware. Attorney General Merrick Garland enlisted Republican special counsel David Weiss in September to probe Hunter over allegations of unlawfully possessing a firearm as a drug user and making false statements on a federal firearms form. Despite admitting to using crack cocaine, Hunter purportedly falsified the forms by denying drug use.
Scarsi dismissed claims that Weiss, who was appointed during Donald Trump’s presidency, was improperly chosen for his position. Furthermore, assertions from Hunter’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, implying that the charges against Hunter were politically motivated and retaliatory by the Republicans, were also rejected by the judge. This decision is a notable setback for the Biden family as the 2024 presidential election draws near, particularly given that a potential deal to prevent a criminal trial for the president’s son is now at risk due to a challenge from a Delaware judge.
Defense lawyers argued that a prosecutor had endorsed a deal containing ongoing immunity provisions, yet Scarsi sided with the prosecution’s contention that it lacked the necessary approval from a probation officer. The initial plea bargain put forward by Hunter had been labeled as a favorable arrangement by Trump and the Republican party.
If found guilty of the tax charges, the current president’s son could potentially face a maximum sentence of 17 years in prison. The trial is scheduled to begin on June 20, starting with the process of selecting a jury. This marks the inaugural instance where a child of a sitting president has confronted criminal accusations.
