Ahead of Hunter Biden’s sentencing hearings, attorneys invoked the specter of President-elect Donald Trump in a pitch for clemency.
The last December of President Joe Biden’s administration also carried the potential to be the waning days of his 54-year-old son’s freedom facing a combined total of up to 42 years in prison for federal convictions.
As the clock ticked down for a possible filial pardon, Hunter’s attorneys filed a 52-page document titled, “The political prosecutions of Hunter Biden,” contending that their client had been persecuted and was in danger of worse from the incoming Trump administration.
“A system that is supposed to protect against abuses failed to do so and was corrupted by political leaders in this country. As a result, Hunter faces significant sentences for felonies and misdemeanors far beyond precedents of others committing less serious offenses or where civil resolutions or consent judgments are normally sought — all on the basis of his mistakes, made while in the throes of serious drug addiction,” the document read in part, as detailed by the Washington Post.
In June, their client was found guilty in Delaware of federal gun charges after having lied on a form about his drug use while purchasing a firearm in 2018, an offense punishable by up to 25 years for which many expected the president’s son would face no time as a nonviolent first-time offender.
Months later in California, Hunter pled guilty to nine tax charges having neglected to pay at least $1.4 million in taxes related to his foreign business deals — debts which entertainment lawyer Kevin Morris had covered — making him eligible for up to 17 years behind bars.
Notably, amid the attorney’s spiel on “persecution,” the prosecution against Hunter Biden was underway by his father’s Department of Justice as Attorney General Merrick Garland had put Special Counsel David Weiss, whose team was comprised of Biden DOJ officials, in charge of the investigation in Aug. 2023.
That didn’t stop arguments that Trump, who himself had been subjected to months of lawfare during his race for the White House, as well as the years of impeachments, hearings and constant allegations brought against him, would be the one to weaponize the justice system against Hunter.
“There is no disputing that Trump has said his enemies list includes Hunter. The prospect that Trump will turn his vengeance on the Special Counsel prosecutors if they fail to take a harder line against Hunter no doubt exerts considerable pressure on them not to let up on Hunter,” read the document.
In a statement reported by the Post, defense attorney Abbe Lowell said, “Here, in one place, is the complete and reprehensible history of the political persecution of Hunter Biden.”
“This is a seven-year saga propelled by an unrelenting political desire to use a son to hurt his father,” he went on. “It is a wild and terrifying story that serves as a stark warning of what is to come as some of the same Republicans who targeted Hunter prepare to resume power and have stated their intention to use the government’s vast power to pursue their perceived enemies.”
Meanwhile, as he decided not to pursue an investigation against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton after the 2016 election over her email scandal for the sake of unity in the country, Trump had already signaled an openness to pardoning the current first son.
“I wouldn’t take it off the books,” he told radio host Hugh Hewitt in October. “See, unlike Joe Biden, despite what they’ve done to me, where they’ve gone after me so viciously, despite what — and Hunter’s a bad boy, there’s no question about it, he’s been a bad boy. All you had to do is see the laptop from hell — but I happen to think it’s very bad for our country. I was, I think you know this, but most people don’t, because most people aren’t of your talent. I could have gone after Hillary. I could have gotten Hillary Clinton very easily.”
Currently, the sentencing hearings for Hunter were scheduled for Dec. 12 in Delaware and Dec. 16 in California.
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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