Hunter Biden Pardoned Amid Tax, Gun Charges: Special Counsel Criticizes White House

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Special Counsel David Weiss released a scathing 280-page report Monday, detailing Hunter Biden‘s tax and gun charges while criticizing President Joe Biden‘s decision to pardon his son. The report, which concluded a six-year investigation, accused Hunter Biden of willfully failing to pay $1.4 million in taxes and using his family name to secure lucrative business deals.

From 2016 to 2020, Hunter Biden earned over $7 million, including $1.5 million in 2016 alone, according to Weiss’ findings. The report stated that Hunter Biden “spent millions of dollars on an extravagant lifestyle rather than paying his tax bills” and deliberately underreported his income to lower his tax liability. Weiss emphasized that Hunter Biden’s drug addiction, which he detailed in his 2021 memoir “Beautiful Things,” did not excuse his actions.

“These are not ‘inconsequential’ or ‘technical’ tax code violations,” Weiss wrote. “Mr. Biden’s conduct cannot be explained away by his drug use.”

Hunter Biden faced multiple legal battles in 2024, including a felony gun case in Delaware and a tax evasion trial in Los Angeles. He pleaded guilty to three felony tax offenses and six misdemeanors in September, just as jury selection was about to begin. The charges carried a maximum sentence of 17 years, but President Biden issued a blanket pardon in December, shielding his son from prosecution for any federal crimes committed between 2014 and 2024.

Weiss took issue with the president’s characterization of the prosecution as “selective” and “unfair.” “Other presidents have pardoned family members, but in doing so, none have taken the occasion as an opportunity to malign the public servants at the Department of Justice based solely on false accusations,” Weiss wrote. He added that the president’s statements “unfairly impugn the integrity” of DOJ personnel.

Hunter Biden’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, criticized Weiss’ investigation as an “abuse of prosecutorial power” and questioned why the special counsel reneged on a proposed plea deal in 2023. The deal, which would have avoided a trial, collapsed after Republican lawmakers and a federal judge raised objections.

Weiss, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump and retained by President Biden, charged Hunter Biden with 12 tax and gun crimes in 2023. He also prosecuted Alexander Smirnov, a former FBI informant who falsely accused the Bidens of accepting bribes from Ukraine. Smirnov was sentenced to six years in prison.

The report, which includes 30 pages of new material and 250 pages of previously public court filings, marks the end of a contentious investigation that drew criticism from both political parties. Despite the controversy, Weiss maintained that his decisions were based solely on “the facts and the law.”