Hunter Biden changed his guilty plea before his trial was due to begin Thursday morning, his lawyer, Abe Lowell, said Thursday, allowing him to avoid a roughly month-long trial that could involve damaging testimony.
The revised plea deal could confirm speculation that President Joe Biden will pardon or commute his son's sentence.
The reversal of the verdict was announced just before jury selection began. Scheduled to begin. Court adjourned after the announcement.
“The terms of the plea were not immediately disclosed, nor was it clear whether the judge would accept his attempt to avoid a trial and proceed directly to sentencing,” NBC News noted. Reported:
“This is the first time I've heard of this,” said federal prosecutor Leo Wise. Fox News.
Special Prosecutor David Weiss indicted Hunter on nine tax charges in December, including three felony counts of failing to report taxes, tax evasion and filing a false tax return. The most serious charges stem from three felony counts of 1) tax evasion in 2018, 2) filing a false individual tax return in 2018, and 3) filing a false corporate tax return in 2018.
To convict Hunter, prosecutors would need to prove he “willfully” broke the law. If convicted, he could face up to 17 years in prison.
For more on Hunter's tax lawsuit, see:
