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→Investigations and federal indictments: clarify that the debt has since been paid with source- it's not impossible to criminally charge for late payment of taxes, but it is rare. |
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In court on July 26, 2023, federal prosecutors explained that the "ongoing" aspect of the investigation referred to possible charges under the [[Foreign Agents Registration Act]] (FARA); FARA requires that anyone who acts on the behalf of a foreign government, e.g. China or Ukraine, must register with the Department of Justice and file regular reports on their activities for that government.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Gurman |first1=Sadie |last2=Linskey |first2=Annie |last3=Tau |first3=Byron |title=Hunter Biden's Courtroom Reversal Extends His Legal Limbo, Political Exposure |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/hunter-biden-plea-deal-limbo-republicans-749b5187 |website=Wall Street Journal |access-date=28 July 2023 |location=Washington, D.C. |date=27 July 2023 |quote=In court on Wednesday, prosecutors said there was still the possibility of additional charges against the younger Biden under the Foreign Agents Registration Act, which requires anyone acting on behalf of a foreign government to file reports on their activities with the Justice Department.... The judge asked if the continuing investigation could yield additional charges such as violations of the Foreign Agents Registration Act. “Yes,” prosecutor Leo Wise replied.}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Fortinsky |first1=Sarah |title=DOJ: investigation 'ongoing;' Hunter Biden attorney says probe 'resolved' |url=https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/4058376-doj-criminal-probe-into-hunter-biden-resolved-lawyer-says/ |work=The Hill |date=June 20, 2023}}</ref> On July 26, the plea deal was rejected by the presiding judge, who cited concerns over immunity Biden might receive from future charges, and gave 30 days to both the government prosecutors and Biden's defense team to provide additional information.<ref name="wsjjul28" /> Biden changed his plea from "guilty" to "not guilty".<ref>{{cite web |last1=McCausland |first1=Phil |last2=Winter |first2=Tom |title=Hunter Biden pleads not guilty after plea deal is derailed |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/hunter-biden-expected-plead-guilty-criminal-tax-case-rcna96232 |website=NBC News |date=July 26, 2023 |access-date=26 July 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=How a fight over immunity unraveled Hunter Biden's plea deal |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/08/17/hunter-biden-plea-deal/ |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=August 17, 2023|author1=Perry Stein|author2=Devlin Barrett|author3=Matt Viser}}</ref>
On August 8, Weiss requested appointment as a [[special counsel]] in the Biden investigation, which attorney general [[Merrick Garland]] granted. Garland announced the appointment on August 11, the same day Weiss announced government and Biden attorneys could not reach agreement on a new plea deal.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Reilly |first1=Ryan J. |title=Attorney General Garland appoints a special counsel in Hunter Biden probe |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/attorney-general-garland-appoints-special-counsel-hunter-biden-probe-rcna99447 |publisher=NBC News |date=August 11, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Savage |first1=Charlie |title=U.S. Attorney Investigating Hunter Biden Is Made a Special Counsel |url=https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/08/11/us/garland-doj-news#garland-weiss-hunter-biden-special-counsel |work=The New York Times |date=August 11, 2023}}</ref> The Justice Department said on September 6 that Weiss would ask a grand jury to return an indictment of Biden on a gun charge by September 29.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Scannell |first1=Kara |title=Special counsel to indict Hunter Biden on gun charges this month, DOJ says |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/06/politics/hunter-biden-gun-charges-indictment/index.html |publisher=CNN |date=September 6, 2023}}</ref> On September 14, Biden was officially [[indictment|indicted]] in Delaware on three [[Federal crime in the United States|federal]] firearms-related charges: two for making false statements on a firearm application form and one for prohibited possession of a firearm.<ref name="Whitehurst"/> He was arraigned on October 3 and pleaded not guilty to all charges. A trial date is yet to be determined. Legal experts and news organizations have noted that prosecutions for these charges are typically rare.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jansen |first=Bart |title=Hunter Biden indicted on federal gun charges for allegedly lying about drug addiction |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2023/09/14/hunter-biden-indicted-on-federal-gun-charge/70853729007/ |access-date=2023-09-19 |website=USA TODAY |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Whitehurst |first=Lindsay |date=2023-09-14 |title=Hunter Biden is indicted on federal firearm-purchasing charges after plea deal fails |url=https://apnews.com/article/hunter-biden-gun-charge-investigation-e5c8ded90ea8c22d2e2e7cb09804b747 |access-date=2023-09-19 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Thrush |first=Glenn |date=2023-09-15 |title=The Gun Charges Against Hunter Biden Are Unusual. Here's Why. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/15/us/politics/hunter-biden-gun-charges.html |access-date=2023-09-19 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Reilly |first=Ryan |date=2023-09-14 |title=Legal experts say the charges against Hunter Biden are rarely brought |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/legal-experts-say-charges-hunter-biden-are-rarely-brought-rcna90191 |access-date=2023-09-19 |website=NBC News |language=en}}</ref> On December 7, 2023, Biden was indicted on nine additional charges, including three felony and six misdemeanor offenses, alleging that he failed to pay $1.4 million in self-assessed taxes he owed between 2016 and 2019 (taxes that were eventually paid, prior to the indictment).<ref>{{cite news|last1=Pitas|first1=Costas|last2=Whitcomb|first2=Dan|date=December 7, 2023|url=https://www.reuters.com/legal/doj-files-new-criminal-charges-against-hunter-biden-cnn-2023-12-08/|title=DOJ files new criminal charges against Hunter Biden|location=[[Washington, D.C.]]|publisher=[[Reuters]]|access-date=December 7, 2023}}</ref>
== Laptop controversy ==
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