Hunter Biden, son of U.S. President Joe Biden, arrives at court for his trial on tax evasion in Los Angeles on Sept. 5, 2024.
Ringo Chiu | AFP | Getty Images
A prosecutor told a federal judge in Los Angeles on Thursday that the Department of Justice opposes a plan by Hunter Biden to enter a so-called Alford plea in his criminal tax case, which would result in a conviction.
Biden’s lawyer, Abbe Lowell, earlier told the judge that the son of President Joe Biden wants to change his not-guilty plea to an Alford plea, in which a defendant maintains they are innocent of criminal charges but concedes prosecutors have enough evidence to convict them.
“Hunter Biden is not innocent. Hunter Biden is guilty,” special counsel Leo Wise, the prosecutor in the case, told U.S. District Judge Mark Scarsi.
“I want to make it crystal clear: The U.S. opposes an Alford plea,” said Wise when court resumed more than an hour after Lowell told Scarsi that Biden wanted to enter that plea.
“We will not under any circumstances accept an Alford plea,” said Wise. “It’s not in the public interest, it’s contrary to the rule of law and we think it’s an injustice.”
Wise told Scarsi that Lowell’s suggestion had caught prosecutors off guard.
“We were as shocked as anyone else,” the prosecutor said.
And he said the prosecution is not in a position to evaluate that plea offer Thursday.
“There’s no way to rush this at this point. And it shouldn’t be rushed,” Wise said.
Scarsi said, “I haven’t seen a case that tells me I have to accept an Alford plea.”
But the judge also said, “Assuming I have the opportunity to reject an Alford plea, why shouldn’t I?”
“I need a reason why I accept or reject a plea,” Scarsi said.
If the judge accepts the Alford plea, Biden would be convicted.
Lowell told Scarsi that Biden is not asking for special treatment, noting that “people all over the US” take Alford pleas.
“He is asking for the same rights as others,” Lowell said. “He is willing to say that the government has put forth sufficient evidence to prove case beyond a reasonable doubt … I don’t know why the government wants to punt.”
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 travel to Wisconsin, ignored shouted questions about Hunter Biden and if he was glad his son was changing his plea.
Hunter Biden, 54, 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 between 2016 and 2019. Biden also is accused of deducting money that he paid to sex workers on his taxes as a business expense and of spending “millions of dollars on an extravagant lifestyle rather than paying his tax bills.”
He was found guilty in June after the 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.
On Thursday morning in Los Angeles federal court, ore than 100 potential jurors assembled for jury selection in Biden’s tax 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 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.”
Wise, the prosecutor, 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 until 2 p.m. ET.
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