US Justice Department moves to drop Hunter Biden case in Delaware

By Iclal Turan

WASHINGTON (AA) - The attorney leading the investigation into the son of President Joe Biden, and prosecutors, asked a judge Friday to dismiss the case in new court filings so prosecutors can bring charges in Washington, D.C., or the state of California.

"On June 20, 2023, the United States filed a criminal information charging the Defendant with two counts of failure to pay taxes, in violation of 26 U.S.C. § 7203. ECF 2. Venue for these offenses does not lie in Delaware. Rather, venue for these offenses and any other related tax offenses lies either in the Central District of California or in the District of Columbia," prosecutors wrote about Hunter Biden.

"The information was filed in this District because the parties had previously agreed that the Defendant would waive any challenge to venue and plead guilty in this District. However, during the July 26, 2023, hearing that the Court set on this matter, the Defendant pled not guilty," it added.

Biden’s attorney Chris Clark said that “whether in Delaware, Washington, D.C. or anywhere else, we expect a fair resolution on behalf of our client.”

“This US attorney has diligently been investigating my client for five years and he had proposed a resolution which we fully intend to pursue in court,” he said.

“We are confident when all of these maneuverings are at an end my client will have resolution and will be moving on with his life successfully," he added.

Hours earlier, US Attorney General Merrick Garland announced he appointed Weiss as special counsel in the Biden probe on tax and gun charges and said doing so is in the "public interest.”

Biden agreed last month to plead guilty to two counts of willful failure to pay federal income tax and another count of illegal possession of a firearm by a drug user. The tax charges are misdemeanors stem from a failure to pay $100,000 in federal income taxes.

But US District Court Judge Maryellen Noreika, another appointee of former President Donald Trump, put the deal on pause last month, questioning part of the plea deal that would have kept Biden out of jail on gun charges.

Biden subsequently pleaded not guilty as his defense team and prosecutors work to revise the deal within a 30-day timeframe set by Noreika.

Garland said the House of Representatives and the Senate were informed of Weiss' appointment.