Hunter Biden moves to dismiss federal gun charges against him

Hunter Biden’s attorney will move to dismiss his federal criminal charges against the president’s son, arguing that a plea deal that a judge refused to accept remains in effect. Hunter’s attorney Abbe Lowell wrote in a filing that the deal, which included an unusual diversion agreement related to a federal weapons charge, was still in effect and provides his client with protection from prosecution.

“He will seek to dismiss the charges against him pursuant to the immunity provisions of that agreement,” Lowell wrote in the filing, NBC reported. The move comes days after the president’s son appeared with Lowell in federal court in Wilmington to plead not guilty to gun charges against him.

Lowell claimed Tuesday that the allegations were the result of “political pressure.” “These charges are the result of political pressure from President Trump and his MAGA allies to force the Department of Justice to ignore the law and deviate from its policies in cases like these,” Lowell said after Hunter told the court to leave.

“The only substantive and relevant changes since July, when the U.S. Attorney’s Office decided not to pursue these exact charges against Mr. Biden, have been several court rulings that undermined the constitutionality of the law at issue and a coordinated, partisan attack on our justice system . by right-wing Republicans.”

The charges relate to Hunter’s 2018 purchase of a Colt Cobra pistol. Federal firearms laws require certification that the purchaser is not using or addicted to controlled substances. Hunter wrote about his own drug use in his autobiography. In July, Judge Maryellen Noreika rejected a plea deal that would have seen Hunter plead guilty to two tax charges while dealing with the weapons charges through a so-called diversion agreement that allowed him to avoid jail time. She called it unprecedented and possibly unconstitutional.

Amid the anger that followed the collapse of that deal, Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed U.S. Attorney David Weiss as special counsel to oversee the case. Weiss said in a filing Wednesday that the diversion agreement was not signed by a court official and thus did not take effect. Defense attorneys and prosecutors clashed in court in July as they debated what the agreement did and did not provide for immunity after being questioned by the judge.

Want more stories like this from the Daily Mail? Visit our profile page here and hit the follow button above for more news you need.