Hunter Biden’s trial on felony tax charges pushed back

Hunter Biden’s tax charges trial will be pushed to September after his legal team advocated for a delay.

The president’s son will now face his tax trial on 5 September in California. US District Judge Mark Scarsi cited the “needs of the defendant” when ruling on the delay, the Associated Press reports. The trial was originally slated to begin 20 June.

Mr Biden was indicted on nine tax-related criminal charges in December, three of which are felony counts. Prosecutors say the 54-year-old made millions from 2016 to 2020 and engaged in a lavish lifestyle while skipping out on more than $1.4m in taxes. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Mr Biden’s legal team told Judge Scarsi they are struggling to prepare for both trials amid the “uniquely challenging and high-profile nature” of the cases, according to the AP. Meanwhile, prosecutors pushed back on the September delay, arguing it was a straightforward case.

The trial date comes after Mr Biden filed to dismiss the charges, a request which Judge Scarsi denied last month.

Hunter Biden, pictured, will now face trial for his nine tax charges on 5 September (Getty Images)

“Defendant provides no facts indicating that the Government undertook charging decisions in any respect because of public statements by politicians, let alone based on Defendant’s familial and political affiliations,” Mr Scarsi said.

Instead of paying his taxes, the prosecution says Mr Biden spent money on “drugs, escorts and girlfriends, luxury hotels and rental properties, exotic cars, clothing, and other items of a personal nature.”

According to the indictment, the president’s son “engaged in a four-year scheme to not pay at least $1.4 million in self-assessed federal taxes he owed for tax years 2016 through 2019, from in or about January 2017 through in or about October 15, 2020, and to evade the assessment of taxes for tax year 2018 when he filed false returns in or about February 2020.”

Mr Biden is still scheduled to go to trial on 3 June for a separate case regarding federal gun charges in Delaware. Prosecutors allege he lied about his history of drug abuse in order to buy a gun that he possessed for eleven days.

He was indicted on three felony gun charges, including falsifying a firearms application, lying to a federally licensed gun dealer and possession of an illegally obtained gun, in September. Mr Biden also pleaded not guilty to those charges.

His attorneys have argued that the 54-year-old had struggled with drug addiction but did not break the law when filling out the form. Mr Biden faces 25 years in prison and fines of up to $750,000 if convicted.

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