The special counsel leading a years-long investigation into Joe Biden's son, Hunter, criticized the president for making “baseless allegations” in the case and defended his investigation in a final report.
In the report released Monday, David Weiss called the prosecution of the president's son for gun and tax crimes “impartial” and “non-partisan politics.”
Hunter Biden's lawyer said the report showed the investigation of Mr. Weiss “is a cautionary tale about the abuse of prosecutorial power.”
Biden issued a formal pardon for his son, who was facing sentencing in two criminal cases, in early December.
While issuing the pardon, the president said his son had been “handpicked” and called his cases a “miscarriage” and “crude politics.”
Mr. Weiss called those claims “baseless and erroneous.”
“I filed both cases against (Hunter) Biden because he broke the law,” he wrote in his report.
Hunter Biden pleaded guilty to tax evasion charges earlier in September and pleaded guilty to illegal drug use and gun possession in June.
His father's full and unconditional pardon for his son came after the president repeatedly said he would not pardon him.
It wasn't the first time a US president pardoned a family member.
Bill Clinton pardoned his younger half-brother Roger Clinton for a cocaine-related offense in 1985. in 2001
In 2020 Donald Trump has pardoned Charles Kushner, the father-in-law of his daughter Ivanka, who pleaded guilty to federal charges of tax evasion and illegal campaign donation payments in 2005.
In his report, Mr. Weiss acknowledged this, but added: “no one has used the case as an opportunity to disparage public officials at the Department of Justice based solely on false allegations.”
Hunter Biden pleaded guilty to nine counts of federal tax fraud in September, for which he faced up to 17 years in prison.
He was also convicted of three felonies in connection with a gun purchase in June, for which he faced up to 25 years in prison.
Investigations into the president's son have brought to light embarrassing and disturbing details about his personal life, including his crack cocaine addiction and alleged payments to attendants.
President Biden remained largely silent during his son's investigation, but fiercely defended him at his pardon.
“There was an effort to break Hunter — who was five and a half years sober, even in the face of relentless attacks and selective persecution,” President Biden said.
“In trying to break Hunter, they tried to break me – and there's no reason to believe they're going to stop there. That's enough.'
He added: “I hope the American people will understand why a father and a president would make this decision.”
The pardon covers the period from January 1, 2014. until Dec. 1, 2024, “including but not limited to” the tax and weapons offenses of which he was convicted.
Mr. Weiss said that because of this unconditional pardon, he could not make any “additional charging decisions” related to Hunter Biden during that period.
“It would be inappropriate to discuss whether additional charges are justified,” he said.
Mr. Weiss has previously defended his investigation into the president's son.
In 2023 he told the House Judiciary Committee there was never any political pressure or interference in his work by the Department of Justice.
Mr. Weiss's investigation into Hunter Biden has been heavily scrutinized on both sides of the political spectrum.
Democrats said it was politically charged and they believe Hunter Biden has an unfair target on his back.
Republicans believe the Justice Department is not pursuing the charges aggressively enough and is showing unfair favoritism to the president's son.
Hunter Biden's guilty plea came after a failed plea deal in 2023.
A judge refused to approve the deal — which Republicans had called a “sweetheart deal” — that would have had Hunter Biden plead guilty to tax evasion charges to avoid more serious gun charges.
In a statement released on Monday, Hunter Biden's lawyer, Abe Lowell, criticized Mr. Weiss for the failed deal.
“Mr. Weiss also failed to explain why he reneged on his own agreement, a reversal that came at the 11th hour in court when he and his cabinet faced blistering attacks from Republicans,” said Mr. Lowell.