US judge rejects Hunter Biden’s bid to toss out tax case

Hunter Biden, the son of United States President Joe Biden, has failed in a bid to have tax charges against him dismissed.

US District Judge Marc Scarsi on Monday denied eight motions to dismiss the case accusing the younger Biden of scheming to evade $1.4m in taxes.

Scarsi said Hunter Biden’s lawyers had provided “virtually no evidence” that his prosecution showed political bias, one of a number of grounds raised for dismissing the case.

“Defendant fails to present a reasonable inference, let alone clear evidence, of discriminatory effect and discriminatory purpose,” the judge wrote in his ruling.

Hunter Biden, who has pleaded not guilty to all charges, has argued that he was charged due to pressure from Republicans and he should be immune from prosecution under an earlier plea agreement, among other claims.

Hunter Biden’s lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said he strongly disagreed with the court’s decision and would “continue to vigorously pursue Mr Biden’s challenges”.

The decision clears the way for a likely trial of Hunter Biden in June, months out from his father’s bid to secure a second term as president in a rerun of the 2020 race against Donald Trump.

Hunter Biden, who is the first child of a sitting president to face criminal charges, has also been indicted in a separate case for alleging lying about this illegal drug use while purchasing a handgun.

The two cases followed a years-long investigation by Special Counsel David Weiss.

A plea deal that would have likely seen Hunter Biden, 53, avoid prison in exchange for admitting to two tax-related misdemeanours and the facts of the gun case imploded in August after a judge questioned its provisions related to immunity from future charges.

If convicted in the tax case, Hunter Biden faces a maximum of 17 years in prison.

-al jazeera