AceShowbiz - President Joe Biden has pardoned his son Hunter Biden, who earlier this year was convicted of gun-related charges in Delaware and pleaded guilty to tax evasion in California. This move comes mere weeks before Hunter Biden's sentencing hearings for the gun and tax cases, which were slated for December 12 and 16, respectively. The pardon ensures that Hunter will not face prison time, a significant shift from the President's earlier stance.

"I believe in the justice system, but as I have wrestled with this, I also believe raw politics has infected this process and it led to a miscarriage of justice," Biden said in a statement issued Sunday night, December 1. He continued, "I hope Americans will understand why a father and a President would come to this decision."

The pardon addresses any potential federal crimes Hunter Biden committed from January 1, 2014, through December 1, 2024. This includes his contentious foreign business dealings while serving on the board of the Ukrainian gas company Burisma. Biden emphasized that the charges against his son were politically motivated, aimed at damaging his own political career.

Hunter Biden's legal troubles began in 2018 under the scrutiny of Special Counsel David Weiss, the Donald Trump-appointed U.S. attorney for Delaware. Hunter faced convictions for three felonies related to a 2018 gun purchase and tax evasion amounting to $1.4 million. Weiss' investigations, Hunter's public struggles with addiction and subsequent trial stirred strong emotions and public interest, as Hunter's challenges were laid bare for all to see.

As President Biden defended his controversial decision, he pointed out the discrepancy in how similarly situated individuals are treated, suggesting that Hunter was unfairly targeted. "Without aggravating factors like use in a crime, multiple purchases, or buying a weapon as a straw purchaser, people are almost never brought to trial on felony charges solely for how they filled out a gun form," Biden noted.

President Biden had spent the Thanksgiving holiday with Hunter and his family in Nantucket, Massachusetts. Reflecting on this period, he remarked, "No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter’s cases can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out only because he is my son – and that is wrong."

The pardon's comprehensive scope shields Hunter Biden from other potential offenses during the defined period, akin to former President Trump's late-term pardons for close allies and family members. Hunter Biden expressed his relief and gratitude, stating in an email, "I have admitted and taken responsibility for my mistakes during the darkest days of my addiction – mistakes that have been exploited to publicly humiliate and shame me and my family for political sport."