In a recent court hearing, the deal between Hunter Biden, embattled son of U.S. President Joe Biden and U.S. judicial authorities collapsed. He had previously entered a not-guilty plea in response to two tax crimes with which he was charged. The allegations stem from his alleged failure to pay taxes on more than $1.5 million in income for the years 2017 and 2018, totaling over $100,000 in unpaid taxes, and to admit to the crimes of illegal gun possession and drug use.
Based on the deal that fell apart in a dramatic court hearing, the guilty plea–which was negotiated over several weeks–would have resulted in Hunter being jailed for a rather lengthy term.
Hunter Biden’s plea agreement with federal prosecutors faced challenges during court proceedings, leading to a 30-day extension for defense lawyers and prosecutors to provide further explanations. The deal is now on hold due to concerns raised by U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika–not surprisingly a Trump appointee–about Biden’s immunity from future charges.
The U.S. judge announced that she could not recognize the agreement, making this the first case where the Department of Justice has charged the son of a U.S. president who is still in power.
Prosecutors announced a plea deal for Hunter Biden’s criminal case, which began before his father’s 2020 campaign. However, a three-hour hearing on Wednesday left the case unresolved. Biden is now required to avoid firearms, alcohol, and controlled substances. The White House expressed support for Biden’s recovery and stated that he is a private citizen and that this is a personal matter for him.
Republicans have criticized the plea agreement, arguing that Hunter Biden received preferential treatment, thus raising concerns regarding a potential conflict of interest within the Justice Department.
The Department is also looking into former President Donald Trump, who is a prominent candidate in the Republican presidential race in 2024. Trump is facing state criminal charges in New York along with a federal indictment in Florida for mishandling of documents, and charges likely soon to come over his role in the attempted notorious January 6 violent insurrection and in election tampering.
Regarding the judge who is handling Trump’s document mishandling case—Aileen Cannon—she was also appointed by Trump and has faced monumental, conflict-of-interest-related pushback to recuse herself–largely based on preferential treatment for which she has afforded Trump in the past–according to multiple legal experts even within Trump’s own Republican Party.
The younger Biden has since changed his plea to that of “not guilty” as a result of Noreika’s surprise intransigence on the matter.