Judge Mark Scarsi appeared skeptical during a hearing in Los Angeles on Wednesday as Hunter Biden‘s attorney argued that the first son’s nine tax charges should be dropped.
Scarsi, an appointee of former President Donald Trump, scrutinized attorney Abbe Lowell’s claim that the Department of Justice’s charges against Biden were the result of a Republican pressure campaign, as well as the claim that a defunct plea deal also shielded the first son from charges, according to reports from the courtroom.
Lowell was present at the hearing, as was special counsel David Weiss. Biden waived his appearance and did not attend.
Biden’s attorneys had argued in court filings ahead of the hearing that the tax charges should be dismissed for numerous reasons, including that Weiss’s prosecution was “selective and vindictive” and had been “compromised by politics.”
“This case follows a nearly six-year record of the DOJ changing its charging decisions and upping the ante on Mr. Biden in direct response to political pressure and its own self-interests,” defense attorneys wrote in their motion.
On Wednesday, Scarsi said, according to ABC News, that the argument seemed to present “smoke” without “fire.”
“There doesn’t seem to be any evidence” that pressure from Republicans “influenced the prosecutors’ decision other than the timeline,” Scarsi said.
Biden’s attorneys had also argued in court filings that a now-withdrawn plea deal Biden reached last summer with Weiss granted the first son “sweeping immunity” that protected him from future charges. The agreement involved Biden pleading guilty to misdemeanor tax charges, but Weiss has argued that a probation office never signed off on the agreement and it was therefore never executed.
Scarsi also challenged the notion that the plea agreement had been executed, saying that a “natural reading” of the agreement would indicate that it was missing a necessary signature, according to CNN.
In a separate case, Weiss indicted former FBI informant Alexander Smirnov last month for allegedly lying to the FBI about Joe and Hunter Biden to hurt Joe Biden’s political prospects ahead of the 2020 election.
Smirnov’s attorney David Chesnoff was present for Hunter Biden’s hearing on Wednesday, according to an NBC reporter. Chesnoff said the arguments presented could “impact [Smirnov’s] case.”
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“I want to hear for my client’s benefit,” Chesnoff said.
