A federal judge rejected Hunter Biden's requests to dismiss his nine-count tax indictment in California, according to court documents.
Hunter, son of President Joe Biden, has pleaded not guilty to failing to pay $1.4 million in taxes from 2016 to 2019. His lawyers had argued in their motions to dismiss the charges, saying that prosecutors "bowed to political pressure to bring unprecedented charges," and specifically took issue with Department of Justice (DOJ) Special Counsel David Weiss, a Trump appointee leading the prosecution.
U.S. District Judge Mark Scarsi denied all eight motions filed by Hunter Biden's legal team, petitioning him to reject the charges. The case is set for trial on June 20.
The Context
The indictment against Hunter Biden, 54, includes three felony counts of tax evasion and filing a false return, along with six misdemeanor charges of failure to return. If convicted, the president's son could face a maximum penalty of 17 years in prison.
The tax-related charges are the second indictment filed against Hunter Biden, who is also facing three federal gun charges in Delaware. He has pleaded not guilty in both cases.
What We Know
Hunter Biden's defense team had presented multiple arguments to dismiss the case, including that an immunity agreement—which fell apart in July—covered him from facing further prosecution in the tax case. Attorneys also filed a motion that sought to dismiss the indictment while arguing that Weiss was "unlawfully appointed" to the case.
In his 82-page decision, however, Scarsi dismissed all arguments presented by the defense, including writing in one of his conclusions that Weiss was "lawfully appointed" to Biden's case.
Biden's lead attorney, Abbe Lowell, said in a statement Monday night, "We strongly disagree with the Court's decision and will continue to vigorously pursue Mr. Biden's challenges to the abnormal way the Special Counsel handled this investigation and charged this case."
Views
Federal prosecutors last month crafted a rebuttal in which they called Hunter Biden's arguments to have his charges dismissed a "house of cards" and characterized the reasoning as a "conspiracy theory."
"The defendant concocts a conspiracy theory that the prosecution has 'upped the ante' to appease politicians who have absolutely nothing to do with the prosecution and are not even members of the current Executive Branch," the prosecutors wrote.
The retort also pushed back on Biden's claims that Weiss' appointment was unlawful, writing that "these arguments are meritless and should be denied."
Newsweek reached out to the DOJ's press office for comment Monday night.
What's Next?
Hunter Biden's tax evasion case will now head for trial on June 20, just 17 days after his federal gun case is tentatively scheduled.
The president's son is also getting pressed by House Republicans, who have launched an impeachment inquiry into allegations that President Biden benefited from his son's business dealings while serving as vice president under former President Barack Obama. The investigation has yet to produce evidence that President Biden was directly involved in his son's business affairs.
Update 04/01/24, 11:35 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information and background.
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Kaitlin Lewis is a Newsweek reporter on the Night Team based in Boston, Massachusetts. Her focus is reporting on national ... Read more
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