Hunter Biden, son of US President Joe Biden, arrives at court for his trail on tax evasion in Los Angeles, California, on September 5, 2024.
Ringo Chiu | AFP | Getty Images
A lawyer for Hunter Biden told a federal judge in Los Angeles there was no reason to proceed with the scheduled start of jury selection in his criminal tax case Thursday morning because the son of President Joe Biden intends to change his plea.
The lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said Hunter Biden wants to enter a so-called Alford plea, in which a defendant maintains they are innocent of the accused crimes, but concedes prosecutors have enough evidence to convict them.
If U.S. Judge Mark Scarsi accepts the Alford plea, Biden would be convicted.
Lowell’s announcement caught prosecutors by surprise. Scarsi gave them time to digest the development and to discuss it with Biden’s defense team.
Under Department of Justice guidelines federal prosecutors “may not consent” to an Alford plea “except in the most unusual circumstances and only after the Assistant Attorney General, Tax Division, or a higher Departmental official, has approved a written request.”
President Biden, as he left the White House on Thursday to head to Wisconsin, ignored shouted questions about Hunter Biden and if he was glad was changing his plea.
Hunter Biden, 54, had previously pleaded not guilty in the case, where he is charged with three felony counts and six misdemeanors related to failing to pay at least $1.4 million in federal taxes from 2016 through 2019.
More than 100 potential jurors were assembled Thursday morning to participate in jury selection for trial in the case.
But Lowell told Scarsi, “There is no reason to proceed with jury selection as Mr. Biden intends to change his plea.”
Lowell told Scarsi there was “no agreement” with prosecutors about Biden’s planned Alford plea. But the lawyer said that there is no requirement for such an agreement.
“The law is very clear. If the defendant satisfies rule 11b, the court is required to accept the plea,” Lowell said.”
Lowell also said, “I don’t think we would agree under conventional plea circumstances,” which could entail having prosecutors agree to the terms of a plea.
Leo Wise, the prosecutor in the case, told Scarsi, “This is the first we’ve heard of this.”
Wise asked for time to discuss the proposed change of plea privately.
“I think this can be resolved today,” Lowell said. “It doesn’t need days.”
Scarsi told the lawyers that — for now — he would not release the 125 people gathered for jury selection. He recessed proceedings in the case until 2 p.m. ET.
Hunter Biden was found guilty in June after trial in another case where he was accused of crimes related to his purchase of a handgun in 2018 while being a user and addict of crack cocaine.
He is awaiting sentencing in that case, which was tried in U.S. District Court in Delaware.
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