Update: A copy of the plea deal can be found here.

BREAKING: Hunter Biden has been charged with two tax misdemeanors and illegal possession of a firearm, pleading guilty to the first two and entering into a pre-trial diversion agreement on the latter, which will undoubtedly keep him out of jail. pic.twitter.com/tetPLIXQZl

— Greg Price (@greg_price11) June 20, 2023

Original Story

After half a decade of investigation, Hunter Biden has been charged with failure to file taxes. According to a court filing, the president’s son will plead guilty to two charges as part of a plea agreement.

As to his illegal possession of a firearm, relating to his lying on a federal form to obtain a gun while on drugs, the younger Biden has agreed to enter a pre-trial diversion program, which means the charge will be dropped as long as he doesn’t violate the law again.

Chris Clark, Hunter’s criminal defense lawyer, in a statement, said, “With the announcement of two agreements between my client, Hunter Biden, and the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware, it is my understanding that the five-year investigation into Hunter is resolved.”

“Hunter will take responsibility for two instances of misdemeanor failure to file tax payments when due pursuant to a plea agreement,” Clark said.

From what we currently know about the plea deal (which is mostly via Hunter Biden’s lawyer), it does not appear Hunter Biden will be charged with tax evasion, a charge that was originally reported as being part of the prosecution. Other charges involving fraud or the more salacious things revealed on his infamous laptop also look to now be off the table.

A misdemeanor failure to file taxes is usually handled with a fine, so it’s probable Hunter Biden never sees the inside of prison at this point. That’s a pretty sharp turnaround from what expectations were given the original seriousness of his crimes.

There’s really no way to spin this other than it looks like Hunter Biden got off easy as far as the charges he received and plead guilty to. At least that’s how many in the general public will see it. As a first-time offender, the deal isn’t unusual (as long as you have top-notch lawyers), but the absurd length of the investigation culminating in a couple of misdemeanors and fines is not going to build any new trust in an already controversial DOJ.

It is worth noting that this investigation and the preceding charges do not deal with anything involving the ongoing Biden bribery scandal. There’s no indication the DOJ and FBI are even looking into that matter, though. Only Republicans in Congress are actively investigating, and any conclusions they draw won’t be backed by the weight of law enforcement.

Most people on the right (and perhaps no small number of independents) are going to see how this played out and see political bias. I don’t blame them for that.