What Did Hunter Biden Do? Charges in His Plea Deal Explained

Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, will appear in court on Wednesday morning in order to plead guilty to tax-related misdemeanors.

The younger Biden is not expected to be handed a custodial sentence when he pleads guilty to the charges at the J. Caleb Boggs Federal Building in Wilmington, Delaware.

In a statement after the Justice Department announced that Hunter Biden, 53, will plead guilty to the tax charges, White House spokesman Ian Sams said: "The President and First Lady love their son and support him as he continues to rebuild his life. We will have no further comment."

Why Is He Facing Misdemeanour, Not Felony Charges?

As part of a plea deal between prosecutors in June, a felony firearm charge that Hunter Biden faced was dropped.

The DOJ said in June that during 2017, Hunter Biden had received taxable income in excess of $1.5 million, and therefore owed the government an income tax in excess of $100,000.00. He was required by law to pay—on or before April 17, 2018—the owed amount to the Internal Revenue Service Center in Hartford, Connecticut, or to another IRS office.

"Well knowing and believing all of the foregoing, Robert Hunter Biden did willfully fail, on or about April 17, 2018, in the District of Columbia and elsewhere, to pay the income tax due," federal prosecutors said.

Hunter Biden was also charged with a similar offense regarding failing to file his taxes on time in 2019 having owed at least $100,000 in federal income taxes for the income he received in 2018.

Hunter Biden, who has a history of drug addiction, was charged with illegally possessing a firearm "despite knowing he was an unlawful user of and addicted to a controlled substance." This charge has now been dropped as a result of the plea deal.

The firearm in question was a Colt Cobra .38SPL revolver, which Hunter Biden was alleged to have been in possession of from around October 12, 2018, to October 23, 2018.

U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika, who is overseeing Hunter Biden's courtroom appearance, has the power to reject the guilty plea from the president's son, although such a move is rare.

House Republicans have urged Judge Noreika to throw out the guilty plea, arguing there is witness testimony from IRS workers who allege Hunter Biden "benefited from political interference" from the Department of Justice under his father's administration during the investigation which "calls into question the propriety of the investigation of the U.S. Attorney's Office."

Christopher J. Clark, a lawyer for Hunter Biden, rejected the claims as "baseless and abusive."