Hunter Biden set to enter guilty plea at late July court hearing
Biden agreed to plead guilty on two misdemeanor charges of failing to pay federal income taxes and cut a separate deal related to a felony gun charge.
Fransebas
Hunter Biden, son of U.S. President Joe Biden, arrives with wife Melissa Cohen Biden prior to President Biden awarding Presidential Medals of Freedom during a ceremony in the East Room at the White House in Washington, July 7, 2022.
Kevin Lamarque | Reuters
President Joe Biden's son Hunter is scheduled to appear next month in federal court, where he is expected to plead guilty to misdemeanor tax charges, according to a court filing Wednesday.
The initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Wilmington, Delaware, is set for 10 a.m. ET on July 26, Judge Maryellen Noreika ordered.
The court proceeding will come more than a month after Hunter Biden, 53, agreed to plead guilty to two misdemeanor charges of failing to pay federal income taxes and cut a separate deal related to a felony gun charge.
Biden's attorney and federal prosecutors had both asked to consolidate both the tax and gun matters into one court appearance.
NBC News reported Tuesday that U.S. Attorney for Delaware David Weiss agreed to recommend that Biden receive a sentence of probation for the tax crimes.
Biden, who has been open about his substance abuse struggles, also agreed to enter into a so-called pretrial diversion agreement in connection with a federal felony charge of possession of a gun by a person who is a user or addict of illegal drugs. Diversion agreements can end with criminal charges being dismissed if completed successfully.
Christopher Clark, the lawyer for the president's son, said Tuesday that with the plea agreement and diversion deal, "it is my understanding that the five-year investigation into Hunter is resolved."
Clark did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment on the judge's order scheduling the hearing.
In an MSNBC appearance Tuesday, Clark said he expects Hunter Biden to be released without conditions after the court proceeding. "Hunter feels happy to move on with his life," Clark said.
Noreika, 56, was nominated to the bench by then-President Donald Trump in 2017. Her nomination received bipartisan support in the Senate, which confirmed her by voice vote in 2018.
The information charging Biden with tax crimes said he did not pay any federal income taxes in 2017 and 2018, despite making more than $1.5 million annually and owing more than $100,000 each year. Those taxes were reportedly repaid.
The other information stated that Biden in 2018 possessed a revolver "despite knowing he was an unlawful user of and addicted to a controlled substance."
