Hunter Biden's lawyer asked the judge during a hearing in federal court in Los Angeles. On Wednesday, the lawsuit dismissed tax charges filed against him last year, calling them politically motivated.
Biden has argued that prosecutors bowed to pressure from Republican lawmakers who launched an impeachment inquiry against his father, President Joe Biden, after an earlier plea deal fell through.
Biden attorney Abby Lowell argued to U.S. District Judge Mark Scalsi that there was “no regularity in how this case was initially investigated.”
“This is not the most ordinary prosecution this person could imagine,” he said, beginning his client's case.
The president's son waived his right to appeal and did not attend.
The justices are hearing arguments on multiple motions filed in recent weeks by both Biden's legal team and the office of special counsel David Weiss, represented by lead prosecutor Leo Wise.
Scalsi is not expected to immediately issue a ruling from the court on the motion, but he has indicated he wants to move the case into the pretrial process as soon as possible.
Also in court for Wednesday's hearing was David Chesnov, the attorney for former FBI informant Alexander Smirnov. Mr. Smirnov is charged with providing false information to the FBI about Hunter Biden and his father, which Mr. Lowell is likely to take up.
“The same prosecutor's office is prosecuting my client, and the arguments being made for dismissal could affect his case. I want to hear that in my client's interest.” Chesnoff told NBC News.
Weiss filed nine tax-related charges against Hunter Biden in California federal court last year, including three felonies and six misdemeanors. Weiss said the president's son failed to pay at least $1.4 million in taxes as part of a multi-year federal tax avoidance scheme, choosing instead to “spend millions of dollars on a lavish lifestyle.” insisted. Escorts and girlfriends, luxury hotels and rental properties, exotic cars, clothing and other personal items. ”
The president's son pleaded not guilty to the charges in January. Last month, his lawyers filed multiple motions asking the judge to dismiss the charges, arguing that prosecutors had “yielded to political pressure.”
“The special counsel has done everything in its power to bring charges against Mr. Biden that have not been brought against anyone else,” Lowell said in a statement when the motion was filed last month. Ta. “Prosecutors have broken binding agreements, bowed to political pressure to bring unprecedented indictments, overstepped their authority, ignored rules, allowed investigators to run amok, and gone to court to defend their actions. He repeatedly misrepresented the evidence.”
Federal prosecutors have pushed back against Hunter Biden's claims, claiming he came up with the “conspiracy theory” to avoid tax charges after an earlier plea deal unraveled.
“The defendant is fabricating a conspiracy theory that the prosecutor's office 'raised the security deposit' to appease politicians who have no connection to the prosecutor's office and are not even members of the current government,” prosecutors said in a filing this month. Stated.
In addition to the tax charges, Hunter Biden was also indicted on federal firearms charges in Delaware last year for allegedly possessing a gun while under the influence of drugs. A trial on the firearm charges is scheduled for June.
Hunter Biden has become a key figure in the House Republican impeachment inquiry into the president. The president's son testified behind closed doors to the Republican-led House Oversight and Judiciary Committee last month, calling the investigation a “sham” in prepared remarks.
