Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Prosecutors Object as Hunter Biden Proposes Entering a Plea to Avoid Trial on Federal Tax Charges
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 9 months ago on
September 5, 2024

Hunter Biden's lawyer proposes an Alford plea to avoid trial on federal tax charges, surprising prosecutors who urge rejection. (AP/Jae C. Hong)

Share

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

LOS ANGELES — Hunter Biden’s lawyer said Thursday that he would enter a plea to avoid trial just as jury selection was set to begin his federal tax case, surprising prosecutors who urged the judge to reject the unusual plea that would allow the president’s son to maintain his innocence.

It’s the latest twist in the long-running legal saga of President Joe Biden’s son, who is already confronting potential prison time after his conviction on felony gun charges in June.

More than 100 potential jurors jurors had been brought to the courthouse to begin the process of picking the panel that would decide whether he’s guilty of misdemeanor and felony charges over what prosecutors say was a four-year scheme to avoid paying at least $1.4 million in taxes while pulling in millions of dollars from foreign business entities.

But defense attorney Abbe Lowell told the judge that the evidence against Hunter Biden is “overwhelming” and that the president’s son wants to resolve the case with what’s referred to as an Alford plea, under which a defendant maintains their innocence but acknowledges prosecutors have enough evidence to secure a conviction.

A prosecutor urged U.S. District Judge Mark Scarsi to reject the proposed plea, saying that Hunter Biden “is not entitled to plead guilty on special terms that apply only to him.”

“Hunter Biden is not innocent. Hunter Biden is guilty,” prosecutor Leo Wise said.

White House Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said she was “not able to comment” on Hunter Biden’s plans to change his plea. President Joe Biden has said he would not pardon or commute a sentence handed down against his son. Asked again Thursday if the president would pardon Hunter, Jean-Pierre said: “Still no.”

Avoiding a Second Criminal Trial

A last-minute plea would allow Hunter Biden to avoid a second criminal trial in just months. He was convicted in June in Delaware of three felony charges over a gun he bought in 2018.

The tax trial was expected to put a spotlight on his foreign business dealings, which Republicans have spent years scrutinizing to accuse his father — without evidence — of corruption in connection with his son’s work overseas.

The potential political ramifications of the trial just weeks before the presidential election may have faded somewhat since President Biden’s July decision to drop out of the 2024 race. But the president is deeply concerned with the well-being of his son, so a trial would likely weigh heavily on him in the final months of his five-decade political career.

Hunter Biden walked into the courtroom holding hands with his wife, Melissa Cohen Biden, and flanked by Secret Service agents. Initially, he pleaded not guilty to the charges related to his 2016 through 2019 taxes and his attorneys had indicated they would argue he didn’t act “willfully,” or with the intention to break the law, in part because of his well-documented struggles with alcohol and drug addiction.

Previous Plea Deal Imploded

Hunter Biden had agreed to plead guilty to misdemeanor tax offenses last year in a deal with the Justice Department that would allow him to avoid prosecution in the gun case if he stayed out of trouble. But the agreement imploded after a judge questioned unusual aspects of it, and he was subsequently indicted in the two cases.

His decision to change his plea Thursday came after the judge issued some unfavorable pre-trial rulings for the defense, including rejecting a proposed defense expert lined up to testify about addiction.

Scarsi, who was appointed to the bench by former President Donald Trump, also placed some restrictions on what jurors would be allowed to hear about the traumatic events that Hunter Biden’s family, friends and attorneys say led to his drug addiction.

The judge barred attorneys from connecting his substance abuse struggles to the 2015 death of his brother Beau Biden from cancer or the car accident that killed his mother and sister when he was a toddler.

Allegations of Lavish Spending

The indictment alleged that Hunter Biden lived lavishly while flouting the tax law, spending his cash on things like strippers and luxury hotels — “in short, everything but his taxes.”

Hunter Biden’s attorneys had asked Scarsi to also limit prosecutors from highlighting details of his expenses that they say amount to a “character assassination,” including payments made to strippers or pornographic websites. The judge has said in court papers that he will maintain “strict control” over the presentation of potentially salacious evidence.

Prosecutors had said they want to introduce evidence about Hunter Biden’s overseas dealings, which have been at the center of Republican investigations into the Biden family often seeking — without evidence— to tie the president to an alleged influence peddling scheme.

The special counsel’s team had planned to have a business associate of Hunter Biden’s testify about their work for a Romanian businessman, who prosecutors say sought to “influence U.S. government policy” while Joe Biden was vice president.

Sentencing in Hunter Biden’s Delaware conviction is set for Nov. 13. He could face up to 25 years in prison, but as a first-time offender, he is likely to get far less time or avoid prison entirely.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Elon Musk Exiting Trump’s Team After Criticizing the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’

DON'T MISS

Tulare Student Will Compete in Scripps National Spelling Bee Finals

DON'T MISS

Federal Trade Court Blocks Trump From Imposing Sweeping Tariffs Under Emergency Powers Law

DON'T MISS

Why Did the California Senate Shunt a Cost-Cutting Housing Bill?

DON'T MISS

Fresno Teachers Call for Probe After Superintendent Orders Up Dossier Against Union

DON'T MISS

US Court Blocks Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ Tariffs

DON'T MISS

Rubio Says US Will Start Revoking Visas for Chinese Students

DON'T MISS

CA Man’s 378-Year Sentence Overturned After Judge Rules Accuser May Have Made Up Charges

DON'T MISS

Fresno Man Faces Life in Prison for Fentanyl, Gun Charges

DON'T MISS

Tiger’s Son, Charlie Woods, Wins Team TaylorMade Invitational in Claiming 1st AJGA Event

UP NEXT

Tulare Student Will Compete in Scripps National Spelling Bee Finals

UP NEXT

Federal Trade Court Blocks Trump From Imposing Sweeping Tariffs Under Emergency Powers Law

UP NEXT

Why Did the California Senate Shunt a Cost-Cutting Housing Bill?

UP NEXT

Fresno Teachers Call for Probe After Superintendent Orders Up Dossier Against Union

UP NEXT

US Court Blocks Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ Tariffs

UP NEXT

Rubio Says US Will Start Revoking Visas for Chinese Students

UP NEXT

CA Man’s 378-Year Sentence Overturned After Judge Rules Accuser May Have Made Up Charges

UP NEXT

Fresno Man Faces Life in Prison for Fentanyl, Gun Charges

UP NEXT

Tiger’s Son, Charlie Woods, Wins Team TaylorMade Invitational in Claiming 1st AJGA Event

UP NEXT

Wired Wednesday: The Human Side of Law Enforcement

Why Did the California Senate Shunt a Cost-Cutting Housing Bill?

13 hours ago

Fresno Teachers Call for Probe After Superintendent Orders Up Dossier Against Union

14 hours ago

US Court Blocks Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ Tariffs

14 hours ago

Rubio Says US Will Start Revoking Visas for Chinese Students

14 hours ago

CA Man’s 378-Year Sentence Overturned After Judge Rules Accuser May Have Made Up Charges

15 hours ago

Fresno Man Faces Life in Prison for Fentanyl, Gun Charges

16 hours ago

Tiger’s Son, Charlie Woods, Wins Team TaylorMade Invitational in Claiming 1st AJGA Event

16 hours ago

Wired Wednesday: The Human Side of Law Enforcement

16 hours ago

CIF Expands Field, Changes Medal Rules for State Track Championships Amid Trump Pushback

16 hours ago

Get Ready for Several Years of Killer Heat, Top Weather Forecasters Warn

17 hours ago

Elon Musk Exiting Trump’s Team After Criticizing the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’

WASHINGTON — Elon Musk is leaving his government role as a top adviser to President Donald Trump after spearheading efforts to reduce and ov...

12 hours ago

Elon Musk listens as President Donald Trump speaks with reporters in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP/Alex Brandon)
12 hours ago

Elon Musk Exiting Trump’s Team After Criticizing the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’

13 hours ago

Tulare Student Will Compete in Scripps National Spelling Bee Finals

13 hours ago

Federal Trade Court Blocks Trump From Imposing Sweeping Tariffs Under Emergency Powers Law

13 hours ago

Why Did the California Senate Shunt a Cost-Cutting Housing Bill?

14 hours ago

Fresno Teachers Call for Probe After Superintendent Orders Up Dossier Against Union

President Donald Trump holds a chart next to U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick as Trump delivers remarks on tariffs in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 2, 2025. REUTERS/Carlos Barria/File Photo
14 hours ago

US Court Blocks Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ Tariffs

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio meets with German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (not pictured) at the State Department in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 28, 2025. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz
14 hours ago

Rubio Says US Will Start Revoking Visas for Chinese Students

15 hours ago

CA Man’s 378-Year Sentence Overturned After Judge Rules Accuser May Have Made Up Charges

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend