Article

2023-07-26 Government Corruption

Hunter Biden plea deal falling apart in stunning turn of events as prosecutors keep future charges alive

[NY Post] Pardon Time!
First son Hunter Biden’s plea agreement was collapsing Wednesday as federal prosecutors declined to rule out charging the political scion with other crimes in the future.

The stunning turn of events came more than 90 minutes into the hearing at the federal courthouse in Wilmington, Del., where Hunter had been expected to plead guilty to two misdemeanor counts of willful failure to pay taxes and enter a diversion program on a felony federal weapons charge.

But prosecutors told US District Judge Maryellen Noreika there was still a possibility the first son would be charged with offenses including failing to register as a foreign agent

Biden had appeared confident ahead of his plea hearing Wednesday, showing up alongside his "sugar brother," attorney Kevin Morris.

Morris, a Hollywood-based lawyer and Democratic donor, was spotted smoking a bong last week outside his Los Angeles home while Hunter, a recovering drug addict, paid a visit.

Hunter Biden agreed last month to plead guilty to failing to pay at least $100,000 on more than $1.5 million in earned income in both 2017 and 2018.

He also agreed to admit to lying about his crack cocaine use on a federal firearm purchase form in 2018.

He faces a maximum sentence of two years’ probation for the tax crimes and 10 years in a federal prison for lying on the gun purchase form.

Under the diversion agreement for the gun charge, Hunter must remain sober, submit to drug testing and avoid committing other crimes for two years.

He also may not own a firearm again.

Morris has been a central — and mysterious — figure in Hunter’s orbit since they met at a December 2019 Biden fundraiser.

He reportedly loaned Hunter about $2 million last year to pay off back taxes in a bid to reduce the likelihood or severity of charges for allegedly evading about $2.2 million in tax payments on $8.3 million in foreign income from 2014 to 2019.

As Hunter cried poverty to reduce child support payments to his 4-year-old daughter Navy Joan Roberts, he used Morris’ private jet in May to travel to a court appearance in Arkansas.

Morris is also among the buyers of Hunter’s novice artworks, according to a Monday report by Business Insider.

And a purportedly leaked business record says he assumed control of Hunter’s 10% stake in Chinese state-backed investment fund BHR Partners, which drew negative headlines and questions about conflicts of interest for Hunter and his dad.

IRS supervisory agent Gary Shapley, who led the tax fraud investigation of Hunter for more than three years, suggested in a recent Fox News interview that he was skeptical about the relationship between the men.

"Well, to say [Hunter Biden] paid [back taxes] is a misnomer, right? Because it was an individual, Morris, that he met at a campaign finance event and then he immediately starts giving Hunter Biden money to pay off tax debts, to pay living expenses," Shapley said.

Morris was spotted last week smoking a bong outside his Los Angeles home while Hunter, a recovering drug addict, paid a visit.

"The money that was given to Hunter Biden by Morris showed up on his tax returns as a loan to him. So, when you have a person that you meet at a campaign finance event, then he’s, all of a sudden, giving you millions of dollars and ... it’s a loan to you, I wouldn’t necessarily say that the subject paid those taxes."

Hunter Biden’s plea deal has been derided by Shapley, primary IRS case agent Joseph Ziegler, and Republicans in Congress as a "sweetheart" deal.

President Biden’s Justice Department appointees allegedly blocked more serious charges while prosecutors allegedly impeded standard investigative steps and barred agents from asking about the president’s role in foreign dealings in countries such as China and Ukraine, despite communications that implicate him.

Posted by Frank G 2023-07-26 12:14|| || Front Page|| [20 views ] Top
File under: Tin Hat Dictators, Presidents for Life, & Kleptocrats

#1 CNN Shellshocked As Hunter's Plea Deal Disintegrates Before Their Eyes

Posted by Frank G 2023-07-26 12:40|| 2023-07-26 12:40|| Front Page Top

#2 The Hunter Biden plea deal is DEAD after the judge expressed MAJOR concerns about the pretrial diversion program for Hunter's felony gun charge that would wipe out additional tax charges.

Posted by DarthVader 2023-07-26 12:47|| 2023-07-26 12:47|| Front Page Top

#3 The process is working.

Posted by Super Hose 2023-07-26 13:24|| 2023-07-26 13:24|| Front Page Top

#4 So maybe they get another chance to get all charges dropped… the goal being to incite people into doing something they can use as an excuse to implement emergency powers.

Posted by Glenmore 2023-07-26 13:27|| 2023-07-26 13:27|| Front Page Top

#5 Hnter's team wanted ALLcurrent and future unrelated charges ruled out with his wrist slap. Still requires a DOJ that is willing to investigate/indict. POS Garland won't, but FARA and tax charges are in order

Posted by Frank G 2023-07-26 13:32|| 2023-07-26 13:32|| Front Page Top

#6 Frank, the correct legal term for all this is Calvinball

Posted by Matt 2023-07-26 13:54|| 2023-07-26 13:54|| Front Page Top

#7 Up next, 'Judge Shopping'

Posted by Mullah Richard 2023-07-26 15:10|| 2023-07-26 15:10|| Front Page Top

#8 I think the next thing will be "Judge Noreika is a threat to Our Democracy and must be impeached." The point being to make sure she doesn't give Hunter jail time, which is richly deserved here.

Posted by Matt 2023-07-26 15:23|| 2023-07-26 15:23|| Front Page Top

#9 Useful comments, guys — y’all are doing the other thing Rantburg does best.

CNN report after the hearing — updated at 1:41 p.m. EDT:

Hunter Biden hearing ends after judge is not ready to accept revised plea deal
Wilmington, Delaware CNN —
A plea deal between President Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden and the Justice Department is on hold after a dramatic court hearing Wednesday.

Hunter Biden failed to pay between $1.1 million and $1.5 million in federal taxes before the legal deadlines and was poised to plead guilty to two tax charges with prosecutors agreeing to recommend a sentence of probation.

But before the original plea could be entered, the deal began to unravel and a revised agreement reached during the hearing was not accepted by the judge.

“I cannot accept the plea agreement today, said District Judge Maryellen Noreika.

Noreika said she had “concerns” about the parties seemingly linking the tax plea agreement to resolving a felony gun charge. During the proceedings, prosecutors confirmed that the investigation into Biden was ongoing.

After negotiations, the president’s son then agreed to plead guilty to the two tax charges in a deal that only includes conduct related to tax offenses, drug use and gun possession. The two sides agreed that this deal does not shield him from potential future charges. But the judge wasn’t satisfied.

“What if it is unconstitutional?” she asked. “I’m trying to exercise due deliverance and consideration to make sure we don’t make a misstep.”

After the discussion, Hunter Biden entered a not guilty plea.

Noreika – a Donald Trump appointee who was confirmed unanimously by the Senate – presided over Wednesday’s hearing and has the sole authority to decide Hunter Biden’s ultimate punishment.

While the investigation was ongoing, Hunter Biden fully paid his federal tax bill, along with interest and penalties, his lawyers have previously said.

The Trump-era Justice Department started investigating Hunter Biden in 2018, and the probe steadily expanded to examine whether he violated money laundering and foreign lobbying laws with his multimillion-dollar overseas business dealings. Federal investigators also looked into Hunter Biden’s unpaid taxes and lavish spending, which came amid a struggle with addiction.

US attorney David Weiss has led the investigation. He was appointed by Trump, and Joe Biden kept him at his post so he could continue handling the probe. There is no public indication that Joe Biden or the White House ever tried to intervene in the probe.

A bizarre legal clash between a top Republican lawmaker and Hunter Biden’s lawyers, which erupted on the eve of his court appearance, did not come up at Wednesday’s hearing.

The dispute revolves around whether a member of Hunter Biden’s legal team lied to the court about her identity so they would remove a Tuesday filing from GOP Rep. Jason Smith, the House Ways and Means Committee chair, about alleged political interference in the probe.

In a late twist, the judge threatened to sanction Hunter Biden’s lawyers over the matter. They denied the claims and called the incident an “unintentional miscommunication” by court staff.

Questions about the probe
Hanging over the plea hearing are recent claims from two IRS whistleblowers who helped lead the investigation that the Justice Department gave preferential treatment to Hunter Biden beginning when Trump was president in 2020.

Their claims dovetail with the GOP-fueled narrative that Hunter Biden got a “sweetheart deal,” even though it’s fairly common for first-time offenders to avoid incarceration in a misdemeanor-only case.

The career IRS agents told Congress that Justice Department officials undercut their attempts to further scrutinize Biden family members, slow-walked requests for subpoenas and search warrants and blocked Weiss from filing the felony tax evasion charges that they had recommended.

The relevant parties – including Weiss, Attorney General Merrick Garland and other senior Justice Department officials – have publicly refuted the whistleblowers’ claims of politicization.

In letters to Congress, Weiss has maintained that he has “been granted ultimate authority over this matter, including responsibility for deciding where, when and whether to file charges.” And earlier this week, he offered to testify at a public House Oversight Committee hearing, likely sometime this fall.

House Republicans have zeroed in on Hunter Biden’s finances as part of their broader oversight probes into the Biden family. They are seeking testimony from Weiss about the criminal probe, and the House GOP’s right-wing flank is already clamoring for a possible Garland impeachment.

Hunter Biden’s lawyers called the IRS whistleblowers “disgruntled agents” with “an axe to grind.”

They’ve also said their client is pleading guilty because he believes “it is important to take responsibility for these mistakes he made during a period of turmoil and addiction in his life.”

This story has been updated with additional developments.

Posted by trailing wife 2023-07-26 15:39|| 2023-07-26 15:39|| Front Page Top

#10 Is it just me or does this sound like the fix is in and Hunter will plead not guilty to all charges and be found not guilty on all.

Posted by jpal 2023-07-26 17:31|| 2023-07-26 17:31|| Front Page Top

#11 Fix WAS in, but they F'd it up. Unravels all the delicate sweeping under the carpet. As I said before: Pardon Time is the only answer and Joe would have to pardon his family and himself. Constitutional SHTF

Posted by Frank G 2023-07-26 18:26|| 2023-07-26 18:26|| Front Page Top

#12 Joe's bearhug involvement in his son's criminal activity puts him well beyond "trying to pick up a turd by the clean end" territory.

Posted by M. Murcek 2023-07-26 18:32|| 2023-07-26 18:32|| Front Page Top

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