Hunter Biden's tax trial date is fast approaching, so his attorneys are now maneuvering to have the charges dismissed.
They made their case to the judge on Wednesday, but the judge seemed rather skeptical of their argument.
Talking Points…
- Hunter's attorneys push to have charges dismissed
- The judge seems skeptical of the argument
- Analysis
Hunter has been accused of evading roughly $1.4 million in taxes between 2016 and 2019. The judge had been eying an early June trial date, so time was running out for the Hunter Biden defense team's legal maneuvers.
Hunter's attorney, Abbe Lowell, filed eight motions on Hunter's behalf to get this case dismissed, claiming there was a "selective and vindictive" prosecution by special counsel David Weiss. Their argument was flimsy at best, claiming that Hunter did some "clearly stupid things," but this was a targeted investigation that was politically motivated.
Lowell went on to claim that prosecuting attorneys had been influenced by "Republicans in Congress and whistleblowers from the IRS" — and directly attacked the "invalid appointment" of Weiss as special counsel.
Hunter's defense further stated:
"This case follows a nearly six-year record of the DOJ changing its charging decisions and upping the ante on Mr. Biden in direct response to political pressure and its own self-interests."
Prosecutors responded that Hunter's attorneys seemed more interested in "attacking prosecutors" than they were in actually preventing facts. Prosecutor Leo Wise also accused Lowell of engaging in "revisionist history."
Judge Mark Scarsi, who was appointed by Donald Trump, did not seem very impressed with the defense's argument. It is not helping Hunter's case that the indictments came down while his father was in office, virtually destroying the weaponized DOJ claim that Hunter's defense team has been making to this post.
Judge Scarsi seemed to agree on that point, stating that the defense's argument had more "smoke" than "fire." Scarsi added:
"There doesn't seem to be any evidence" that pressure from Republicans "influenced the prosecutors' decision other than the timeline."
After hearing arguments, Scarsi said he would issue his ruling on the case on April 17. He has also set a date for the trial for June 20.
Hunter Biden had his chance at a settlement, but his attorneys decided to puff out their chests and attack prosecutors who were, up to that point, helping Hunter as much as they possibly could. Weiss did not want this case to wind up in a courtroom, but his hand was forced when Lowell and his team started attacking the Special Counsel's office. I don't expect Hunter to get any jail time, but he is not going to get off scot-free at this point, either.
