https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/09/14/hunter-biden-indictment-gun-charges/
President Biden’s son Hunter was indicted Thursday for allegedly
making false statements and illegal gun possession — setting the stage
for a possible criminal trial for the younger Biden in 2024 while his
father campaigns for reelection.
The charges follow the collapse in July of a plea deal that lawyers
for Hunter Biden had negotiated with U.S. Attorney and special counsel
David Weiss, in which Biden would have pleaded guilty to two
misdemeanor tax violations while admitting to illegal possession of a
gun but not actually pleading guilty to that felony offense.
The four-page indictment accuses Biden of making two false statements
in filling out the paperwork to purchase a gun on Oct. 12, 2018. He
claimed to not be addicted to or using illegal drugs, the indictment
says, “when in fact, as he knew, that statement was false and
fictitious.”
Count three of the indictment charges Biden with unlawfully possessing
that gun, a Colt pistol, for 11 days following that purchase. That
charge is based on a federal law making it illegal to possess a weapon
while a person is using illegal drugs.
A representative for Biden’s legal team did not immediately respond to
a request for comment. Previously, his lawyers and defenders have
argued that prosecutors very rarely indict people on such gun
violations unless the charge can be tied to more serious crimes. To do
so in Biden’s case, his lawyers have said, would be an unfair
application of federal charging practices.
Weiss, who launched the investigation into Hunter Biden as the
Delaware U.S. attorney during the Trump administration, signaled
earlier this month, after the plea deal fell through, that he planned
to seek an indictment.
Hunter Biden’s lawyers argued then that their client should not be
charged because — in their view — the portion of the failed deal that
related to the weapons charge remains in effect.
That part of the deal required Biden to enter a pretrial diversion
program, an option typically applied to nonviolent offenders with
substance abuse problems. In all, he would have spent about two years
on probation but avoided jail time if he kept to the terms of the
deal, which included not owning a gun or engaging in criminal conduct.
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Interesting, so they're taking Hunter's ass to trial, I guess all the
BS about his "sweetheart deal" meant nothing, when the system works as
it should, and it's not just rubber stamped. This is *predictable and
normal* in a case like this. I bet my reputation that it ends with
Hunter paying a meaningful price, but no evidence to connect Dad to
anything nefarious.
--
Joel Crump