U.S. District Judge Mark Scarsi on Monday denied all eight of Hunter Biden’s motions to dismiss the nine federal tax charges he faces in California.
At a hearing last week, Hunter Biden’s attorney primarily argued that the charges against him were part of a politically fueled prosecution. Special counsel David Weiss’ office rebutted those claims, arguing politics had no bearing on the facts of the case.
Judge Scarsi also appeared skeptical of Biden’s arguments. In his order Monday, Scarsi said Biden failed to provide “clear evidence” of discriminatory purpose and provided only “conjecture” about prosecutorial decisions made in the case.
“We strongly disagree with the Court’s decision and will continue to vigorously pursue Mr. Biden’s challenges to the abnormal way the Special Counsel handled this investigation and charged this case,” Biden’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, told CBS News in a statement.
Biden has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Federal prosecutors allege President Biden’s son engaged in a “four-year scheme” to avoid paying at least $1.4 million in federal taxes. In December, they charged him with felonies and misdemeanors related to his alleged failure to file and pay taxes, evasion of assessment and filing a false or fraudulent tax return.
Prosecutors say Hunter Biden had earned more than $7 million in gross income when he failed to pay taxes and said he funded an “extravagant lifestyle” and evaded taxes by classifying some personal expenditures — such as luxury hotel stays, luxury vehicle rentals and escort services — as business deductions.
If convicted, he faces up to 17 years in prison.
Another key argument made by Hunter Biden’s counsel was that the tax charges violated a legally binding diversion agreement made last year. But prosecutors argued the proposed agreement had not been approved by the U.S. Office of Probation and had not yet gone into effect. Scarsi found that Hunter Biden was not granted immunity from the charges.
Erica Brown covers investigative stories, often on politics, as a multiplatform reporter and producer at CBS News. She previously worked for BBC News and NBC News.
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