- Hunter Biden’s Guilty Plea and Charges
- White House Response and Support
- Trump’s Reaction and Historical Context
Hunter Biden, the son of US President Joe Biden, has consented to plead guilty to two counts of failing to pay federal income tax and has admitted to illegally possessing a firearm, according to prosecutors on Tuesday.
Republican politicians have long criticised Hunter Biden’s business operations.
A Delaware federal judge must approve the 53-year-old’s plea agreement with the US Attorney’s Office. The Son of the president is unlikely to face incarceration.
President Biden and his wife, Jill, issued a brief statement after the agreement was announced.
“The President and First Lady love their son and are supporting him as he continues to rebuild his life,” said White House spokesman Ian Sams. “We will have no further comment.”
US Attorney David Weiss said Hunter Biden pleaded guilty to “two counts of willful failure to pay federal income tax.”
According to the charges, Biden neglected to file tax returns on time for 2017 and 2018 earnings exceeding $1.5 million. On these proceeds, he owed more than $100,000 in taxes for both years.
Each conviction entails a one-year prison sentence and a $100,000 fine, double the amount he gained by breaching the law.
Weiss stated that Hunter Biden was also charged with “possession of a firearm by a person who is an unlawful user of a controlled substance or is addicted to a controlled substance.” Hunter Biden has confessed to a history of drug abuse.
He will undergo “pre-trial diversion,” which usually involves therapy or rehabilitation.
Clark stated, “I am aware that Hunter believes it is essential to accept responsibility for the errors he made during a period of turmoil and addiction in his life.”
In December 2020, Hunter disclosed that Weiss’s office was investigating his tax affairs. He denied culpability. In a 2021 memoir, he detailed his struggles with substance addiction, including crack cocaine use and alcoholism.
He was expelled from the US Navy reserve in 2014 after testing positive for cocaine, sources said.
“He looks forward to continuing his recovery and moving forward.” Former Republican President Donald Trump, who faces felony charges for mishandling government secrets, referred to the agreement as a “mere traffic ticket” for Hunter Biden.
“Our system is BROKEN!” Trump said in a Truth Social platform post.
The president has two surviving offspring, his son Hunter and his daughter Ashley. His son Beau Biden died of cancer in 2015, and his daughter Naomi Biden perished as an infant in a car tragedy that also claimed the life of Joe Biden’s first wife.
According to University of Tennessee presidential history scholar Aaron Crawford, Hunter Biden may be the first presidential child indicted.
According to Crawford, the families of multiple presidents were embroiled in scandals, including George H.W. Bush’s son Neil, who oversaw a failed savings and loan, and Richard Nixon’s brother Don, who was rescued from business failures by the affluent businessman Howard Hughes.
