Hunter Biden to face tax-fraud charges in Los Angeles courtroom

LOS ANGELES (NewsNation) — Hunter Biden is due in a Los Angeles federal court on Thursday, where he is expected to plead not guilty to tax charges stemming from business dealings that have also prompted an impeachment probe of his father.

President Joe Biden’s son faces three felony and six misdemeanor counts, including filing a false return, tax evasion, failure to file and failure to pay. The charges stem from what federal prosecutors say was a four-year scheme to skip out on paying the $1.4 million he owed to the IRS.

Prosecutors say he spent millions on an extravagant lifestyle rather than paying his tax bills.

His lawyers have accused the special counsel in the case of bowing to Republican pressure.

Hunter Biden is due in court at 4 p.m. ET.

The cases come after the implosion of a plea deal involving tax and gun counts that would have spared him jail time. Instead, Hunter Biden is now also charged with federal firearms courts in Delaware alleging he broke laws against drug users having guns in 2018.

Thursday’s court appearance follows Hunter Biden’s surprise visit to a House Oversight Committee hearing on Wednesday. The meeting turned heated at times with shouting matches, focusing on a resolution to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena in the closed-door testimony related to an impeachment inquiry into the president.

Republicans seek to interview Hunter Biden over claims that then-Vice President Biden benefitted financially from his son’s business dealings, although there’s no direct evidence supporting those claims.

Hunter Biden has offered to testify publicly, but his appearance during Wednesday’s meeting created a spectacle on Capitol Hill.

“I think that Hunter Biden should be arrested right here right now and go straight to jail,” said Republican Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina. “Yes, I’m looking at you Hunter Biden as I’m speaking to you. You are not above the law at all.”

“Republican chairs today are common dear in unprecedented resolution to hold someone in contempt, who has offered to publicly answer all their proper questions,” said Abbe Lowell, an attorney for Hunter Biden. “The question there is what are they afraid of?”

The resolution to hold Hunter Biden in contempt of Congress is headed to the House floor and, if approved, the Department of Justice will decide whether to prosecute him.