West News Wire: Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, will admit guilt to two federal tax offences, the Justice Department said in a court filing in Delaware on Tuesday. Additionally, Biden will sign a probationary agreement for acquiring a handgun while abusing drugs. He will probably show up in person for his arraignment in court at a later time.
Hunter Biden will accept probation as part of the agreement, which was reached after months of negotiations between federal prosecutors and his legal counsel. He will be charged with misdemeanor counts for failing to file his taxes for the years 2017 and 2018. Although it has agreed not to prosecute, the Justice Department will also charge Biden in relation to his acquisition of a pistol at a time when he was using drugs.
The agreement, which is subject to approval from a federal judge, is likely to be a key topic during the 2024 US presidential election. It is also set to resolve an ongoing investigation into alleged wrongdoing by Hunter Biden without him facing the risk of a federal prison sentence.
Biden’s attorney, Christopher Clark, released a statement saying that Hunter “will take responsibility for two instances of misdemeanor failure to file tax payments when due pursuant to a plea agreement.” The government will also bring a charge involving a firearm, which will be covered by a pretrial diversion deal but not by the plea bargain.
Hunter believes it’s critical to accept responsibility for the errors he made during a time of struggle and addiction in his life, Clark continued.
The federal accusations came after a thorough investigation by David Weiss, the US attorney for Joe Biden’s home state of Delaware, into claims of impropriety in Hunter Biden’s business activities, which had been going on since at least 2018. Weiss was selected to pursue the case by former President Donald Trump.
Hunter Biden, who has worked as a lobbyist, lawyer, investment banker and artist, has publicly detailed his struggles with narcotics at various stages of his life. However, some Republican critics have accused him of an array of crimes linked to an alleged campaign of influence-peddling, which they say extended to his father.
Hunter Biden’s membership on the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma, as well as his pursuit of deals in China, led to accusations that he had been leveraging his father’s political positions for personal gain.
“The president and first lady love their son and support him as he continues to rebuild his life,” a White House statement said on Tuesday. “We will have no further comment.”
