Hunter Biden Pleads Guilty in Federal Tax Case, According to Reuters

By Jackie Luna

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Hunter Biden, the son of U.S. President Joe Biden, entered a guilty plea to federal tax charges on Thursday, an unexpected development that sidesteps a potentially embarrassing trial just weeks before the U.S. presidential election.

Biden was scheduled to stand trial in a federal courthouse in Los Angeles for criminal charges related to his failure to pay $1.4 million in taxes while indulging in a lavish lifestyle characterized by drug use, expenditures on sex workers, and luxury items. Instead of facing a jury, he pleaded guilty to all nine counts against him.

Judge Mark Scarsi informed Biden that he could face up to 17 years in prison and fines reaching $450,000. Sentencing is scheduled for December 16.

Typically, defendants who plead guilty in criminal cases negotiate with prosecutors in advance to secure a lighter sentence, but that did not seem to be the case here. Earlier in the day, Biden had proposed an unusual legal tactic known as an “Alford plea,” which would allow him to plead guilty without admitting guilt. Prosecutors opposed this approach.

After a recess, Biden’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, informed the judge of his client’s decision to plead guilty without any prearranged agreement that might alleviate his sentencing.

Following the hearing, Biden expressed that he opted to plead guilty to spare his family from enduring a trial that could reveal uncomfortable details from his past struggles with addiction. “For all I have put them through over the years, I can spare them this,” he remarked, adding that he has since paid back his taxes.

Lowell mentioned to reporters that Biden might consider appealing his sentence but did not provide an explanation for why Biden chose the first day of the trial to enter his plea.

This plea effectively avoids a lengthy trial that would have coincided with the critical election campaign period. Voters will choose between Vice President Kamala Harris, a Democrat, and former Republican President Donald Trump on November 5. Joe Biden had exited the re-election race in July amid pressure from party members.

Hunter Biden has openly discussed his battles with addiction and is accused of neglecting tax payments from 2016 to 2019 while spending extravagant amounts “on drugs, escorts and girlfriends, luxury hotels and rental properties, exotic cars, clothing, and other personal items,” as outlined in the indictment.

The trial could have also examined issues related to his involvement with the Ukrainian company Burisma and other business transactions during his father’s tenure as vice president. Opposition members have alleged that these dealings were corrupt.

The indictment asserts that Hunter Biden “earned handsomely” while serving on the boards of Burisma and a Chinese private equity fund. He has denied any misconduct in his business dealings, and Republican-led congressional investigations have not implicated his father in wrongdoing.

Currently, he is appealing a guilty verdict in a separate Delaware case concerning the illegal purchase of a firearm while under the influence of drugs.

This previous conviction may result in a harsher sentence for the tax case, should he be convicted, labeling him a repeat offender.

The White House has indicated that President Biden will not consider pardoning his son.