WASHINGTON, D.C. – Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, is facing felony gun charges following an indictment by special counsel David Weiss. The charges mark a significant escalation in the legal challenges confronting the younger Biden, whose previous plea deal with prosecutors has recently collapsed.
The indictment includes two counts of making false statements during the purchase of a firearm and a third count of illegally obtaining a firearm while being addicted to drugs. The charges carry potential sentences of up to 10 years and five years, respectively, for the false statements, and up to 10 years for the possession charge.
Hunter Biden’s business activities and personal life have been under intense scrutiny for years, culminating in a plea agreement in June that would have allowed him to plead guilty to two misdemeanor tax offenses and enter a pretrial diversion program to avoid prosecution on the felony gun charge. However, this agreement fell apart in July during a court hearing when U.S. Judge Maryellen Noreika expressed concerns about the agreement’s structure and the scope of an immunity deal.
In a significant development on Aug. 11, Attorney General Merrick Garland promoted Weiss, originally appointed by former President Donald Trump, to special counsel, giving him wider authority to press charges against Hunter Biden anywhere in the country. Following this, prosecutors informed the court that negotiations had reached a stalemate, with Hunter Biden’s attorneys accusing Weiss’ office of backtracking on their agreement.
The charges brought against Hunter Biden are unlikely to be the last. Weiss has also withdrawn the two misdemeanor tax charges in Delaware, intending to reintroduce them in California and Washington, D.C., where the alleged misconduct took place. However, no timeline has been provided for these charges.
Hunter Biden’s legal team insists that the pretrial diversion agreement, signed by prosecutors, is still valid. Weiss’ team counters this claim, stating that the probation officer never signed it, thereby rendering it null and void.
The charges stem from an incident in October 2018 when Hunter Biden acquired a gun despite admitting in his memoir, “Beautiful Things,” that he was addicted to drugs at the time. Prosecutors allege that Biden lied on a federal form about his drug use and abused crack cocaine almost daily.
The indictment’s implications extend beyond Hunter Biden’s legal troubles, potentially impacting President Biden’s 2024 election campaign. Despite no clear evidence of corruption within the Biden family, the president’s political adversaries have seized on Hunter’s overseas business dealings to level allegations of corruption.
Meanwhile, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has announced plans to initiate an impeachment inquiry against President Biden over his alleged involvement in his son’s influence-peddling. The White House has dismissed this move as “extreme politics at its worst,” maintaining that “the president hasn’t done anything wrong.”