The Justice Department is reportedly discussing the possibility of delaying Hunter Biden’s plea hearing following allegations of a ‘sweetheart deal’ by whistleblowers and claims that Attorney General Merrick Garland provided misleading information to Congress regarding the Biden criminal probe.
On July 26, a Delaware federal judge will decide whether to accept the proposed plea deal involving two tax misdemeanors for the First Son. Republican lawmakers are urging Judge Maryellen Noreika to reject the perceived lenient agreement, as IRS whistleblowers, who investigated Hunter for five years, assert that more severe charges related to tax and corruption could have been pursued.
A recent legal filing indicates that the DOJ is considering postponing the finalization of the plea deal in response to mounting criticism. The potential postponement of the plea hearing was reported by the Daily Mail on Sunday.
The Heritage Foundation, a conservative charity, is suing the Justice Department for failing to release communication records of Delaware prosecutor David Weiss through a Freedom of Information Act request.
A court filing from the Foundation revealed a June 29 phone call between their lawyer and DOJ counsel Jason Lynch, where Lynch allegedly made a significant admission. The Foundation’s lawyer, Samuel Dewey, suggested that they could request a delay of Hunter’s plea hearing from the federal judge to allow ample time for the processing and release of Weiss’ records, enabling scrutiny of the prosecutorial agreement.
“DoJ Counsel indicated that Plaintiffs were ‘absolutely right’ that the Department could file such a motion and that DoJ Counsel would take that point back to the ‘District’ (presumably speaking of the District of Delaware),” Dewey said.
“They have the capability to move the plea deal, though they didn’t indicate any likelihood they would,” Heritage Foundation Oversight Director Mike Howell told the Daily Mail.
“The public has an interest to assess for themselves: is this a sweetheart deal? It certainly appears to be. This information needs to be out and it’s in the public interest for it to be out prior to any plea being signed off on,” he added.
The Foundation submitted its FOIA request to the DOJ in March, seeking documents and communications between Weiss’ Delaware office and other DOJ officials pertaining to the Hunter Biden investigation. They resorted to litigation after the Department failed to produce any records for several months.
Howell emphasized that the Foundation is seeking evidence to substantiate the whistleblowers’ claims that Weiss was prevented from prosecuting Hunter’s crimes in other jurisdictions, including Central California and Washington DC, allegedly due to Biden-appointed prosecutors.
While Attorney General Merrick Garland stated that Weiss possessed all the necessary authority to prosecute Hunter for crimes anywhere in the US, IRS investigators testified before Congress that Weiss claimed he was obstructed from pursuing felony tax charges by prosecutors appointed by the Biden administration in DC and Los Angeles.
“If the whistleblowers are correct, U.S. Attorney Weiss’ Office should have responsive records that will corroborate the whistleblowers,” Dewey wrote in the Heritage Foundation lawsuit.
“There are events so grave—so essential—to our constitutional order that if we are to keep our Republic, the American people must have a full accounting of the facts. A state of affairs where there is a substantial question as to whether the Attorney General misled Congress is intolerable. That is why production of the records sought by Plaintiffs is essential. And why it is essential now.”
The DOJ, in its legal responses, stated that they will attempt to produce some records but will not disclose anything until after Hunter’s plea hearing on July 26. Once Judge Noreika approves the deal, the details of which remain undisclosed, it is unlikely to be reversed.
Judge Dabney Friedrich, presiding over the Heritage Foundation’s FOIA lawsuit, instructed the DOJ to provide legal arguments in response to the charity’s emergency demand for documents by July 10.
Howell expressed concern that the non-felony charges, resulting in no prison time, would effectively serve as a “back door pardon.”
“What they’re essentially doing is giving Hunter Biden a pardon through other means by giving him this slap on the wrist when there’s all this other bombshell whistleblower testimony and a pattern of shady business dealings from the Biden family,” Howell informed the Daily Mail.
Chris Clark, one of Hunter’s lawyers, defended the plea deal as an indication of his client taking responsibility.
“Hunter will take responsibility for two instances of failure to file tax payments when due,” Clark stated in a written statement following the announcement of the agreement with prosecutors last month.
“I know Hunter believes it is important to take responsibility for these mistakes he made during a period of turmoil and addiction in his life,” Clark claimed. “He looks forward to continuing his recovery and moving forward.”
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Source: Becker News Rephrased By: InfoArmed