Hunter Biden’s lawyers feared Trump would be re-elected and revoke his probation: New details reveal why the plea deal collapsed dramatically as the president’s son was protected from future crimes
The Hunter Biden plea deal that a federal judge blew up in court Wednesday included a feature that appears to be designed to impose guardrails against attempts by a potential Donald Trump administration to overthrow it.
Trump has been furious for years against what he calls the “Biden crime family” and Hunter in particular, and has vowed to settle scores if he gets the White House back.
U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika repeatedly fired parts of the agreement during a three-hour hearing in her Wilmington courtroom.
One of the provisions she ranted against was a paragraph about a possible breach of the deal to defer prosecution on a gun charge – and who would decide if Hunter violated it.
Normally, the prosecutors would make the decision. But according to the language being pushed by Hunter’s team, if the government believes there has been a “knowing material breach” of the agreement, it would seek a decision from the U.S. District Judge in Delaware – Noreika.
Hunter Biden’s plea deal drew scathing criticism from a federal judge, who resisted being placed in the middle as an arbitrator on whether he is found in violation of an agreement
They would seek a determination based on a “preponderance of the evidence,” and if they get one, they could be charged with perjury, obstruction of justice, or other criminal offenses.
The judge called the deal “non-standard” and said it could be unconstitutional by giving her a role normally filled by prosecutors themselves, who are part of the executive branch.
The judge had federal prosecutor Leo Wise read from the agreement in open court, and Politics receive the entire document.
“I don’t want to violate the separation of powers or do anything (un)constitutional,” the judge said. She also said she had never seen a diversion deal “so broad” as to include crimes in any other case.
Former President Donald Trump has railed against Biden’s ‘crime family’, clashing with his attorneys general and attacking special counsel Robert Mueller and Jack Smith
Biden attorney Chris Clark negotiated an agreement with prosecutors that puts a judge in the mix to decide whether there has been a violation. It could isolate his client in case Trump tries to order prosecutors to go after Hunter
“I thought Hunter Biden’s lawyers had made it very clear why they wanted to get the judge involved, which is to have this neutral party in the event that the courthouse is under a different administration,” the former prosecutor for the southern district of New York said. New York, Jessica Roth. CNN.
Another former prosecutor, Joyce Vance of the Northern District of Alabama, wrote on Substack that Hunter Biden had become Trump’s “favourite whip boy” and faces “ongoing risk of further prosecution if Trump returns to office,” arguing that the idea of a more neutral arbitrator has merit.
“Trump is focused on vengeance and retaliation, and Hunter Biden seems to be at the center of his focus… Given Trump’s public statements about the “Biden crime family”, there are good reasons for concern if you are Hunter Biden or his lawyers. So it makes sense to include a provision requiring court approval as a guarantee against vengeful prosecutions in the future.”
The judge was appointed by Trump, but was recommended by two Democratic senators. She received praise Tuesday from former Robert Mueller top prosecutor Andrew Weissmann for her courtroom performance, who called her work “exceptional.”