Will Joe Biden Pardon Hunter Biden if Convicted? White House Says 'No'
President Joe Biden is not pulling a Donald Trump and pardoning those close to him, even if it is his son, Hunter Biden. This was confirmed by White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre during a recent press conference.
Jean-Pierre was asked by a reporter if the president will get involved if ever Hunter Biden is convicted on tax and gun possession charges. The White House press secretary answered this with a simple "No."
She did not elaborate further, but the White House confirmed on Thursday that President Joe Biden will not pardon his son should Hunter Biden be convicted.
Politico noted that the younger Biden has been the subject of a yearslong investigation into his business dealings and his failure to pay taxes over them. This is in addition to his illegal possession of a firearm charge last month, as he is legally barred from owning any guns for being a known drug user back in 2018. For the latter charge, he faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
The president has distanced himself from his son's case, with Republicans failing to find any connections between Hunter Biden's alleged crimes and the president whom they accuse of being connected with those alleged crimes.
The Federal Investigation Into the Hunter Biden Case
While Joe Biden will not pardon his son, Hunter Biden is currently facing several investigations, including one from the Department of Justice (DOJ). This has been happening since 2018 and is led by US Attorney David Weiss. In that investigation, prosecutors looked into his "tax affairs" and examined whether he paid enough taxes based on his income, including the money he made from multiple overseas business ventures.
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According to ABC News, Hunter Biden previously borrowed $2 million from his lawyer and confidant Kevin Morris in order to pay back taxes, penalties, and liens that he owed to the IRS. A grand jury in Delaware has already heard testimony from multiple witnesses over the probe, with some of the younger Biden's business partners testifying.
This led the embattled presidential son to agree to plead guilty to two tax-related misdemeanors and enter into a pretrial diversion agreement. This would make him avoid any prosecution on one felony gun charge and end the probe potentially. However, things changed when Judge Maryellen Noreika deferred the deal, which then led to Hunter Biden pleading "Not Guilty."
What Happens to Hunter Biden Now?
After the plea agreement broke down, the judge told both sides that they have 30 days to reach a new agreement and it should address her concerns about the deal's legality, according to the BBC.
"You are all saying, 'Just rubber stamp the agreement'," the judge told the lawyers for both sides, "I'm not in a position to accept or reject it. I need to defer."
For now, the presidential son and prosecutors must reach a new plea agreement within the time period that the judge gave. Otherwise, prosecutors could add more serious criminal violations to the charge sheet.
If a new deal is reached, however, Judge Noreika will have to approve it before issuing a sentence against Hunter Biden. The judge herself will be the one to determine the appropriate punishment as she has already scrapped the previous plea deal which would have the younger Biden face parole and no jail time.
This article is owned by Latin Post.
Written by: Rick Martin
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