Hunter Biden plea agreement in tax, gun case set for July court date

Next month, Hunter Biden will appear before a judge to formally negotiate a plea deal with the prosecution over tax and gun charges that is expected to keep him out of jail.

Washington, D.C. According to court documents posted on Wednesday, Hunter Biden will go before a judge next month to formally reach a plea deal with prosecutors on tax and weapons charges that is expected to keep the son of President Joe Biden out of jail.

The plea arrangement that was struck following a protracted federal inquiry still needs to be approved by U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika. The president's son is required to enter a guilty plea to two misdemeanour counts of failing to file taxes. Hunter Biden must also agree to follow the court's rules in order to avoid being fully prosecuted for a felony firearms offence.

The combined initial appearance and plea bargain hearing is set for July 26.

Republicans who are conducting their own congressional investigations into practically every aspect of Hunter Biden's business operations, including foreign payments, criticised the plea deal when it was made public on Tuesday.

Attorney General Merrick Garland stated that David Weiss, the U.S. attorney for Delaware, was granted "full authority to decide the matter as he determined was appropriate" while on the road in Stockholm on Wednesday. And that's exactly what he did.

As Trump confronts an unprecedented criminal indictment, the former president and other Republicans have used the issue to cast doubt on the independence of the Justice Department. To prevent the appearance of a political conflict, a special prosecutor was chosen to bring the accusations against Trump.

In the meantime, U.S. Attorney Weiss, who was appointed by Trump and retained during the Biden administration to pursue the investigation, brought charges against Hunter Biden. In 2017, Trump also appointed Noreika.

Hunter Biden's attorney claims the guilty pleas are an effort on his part to accept responsibility for errors committed "during a period of turmoil and addiction in his life," and he believes that they put an end to the five-year inquiry into his client.