Biden’s attorney argued in court documents that the plea agreement that freed him from prosecution for felony gun possession remains in effect, although the misdemeanor tax plea agreement fell apart during a court appearance. last month.
The lawyer for the president’s son argued that the Justice Department decided to “renege” on its part of the agreement on the tax charges. The agreement on the gun possession charge also contains an immunity clause from federal prosecution for other possible crimes.
Biden plans to abide by the terms of that agreement, including not using drugs or alcohol, attorney Christopher Clark said in court papers filed Sunday night. Prosecutors, who “largely dictated” the agreement after inviting them to start negotiations in May, should also be bound by it, he argued.
It is unclear if prosecutors agree that the deal on the gun possession charge remains valid. District Judge Maryellen Noreika ordered them to respond by Tuesday. The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
The two-part deal on the prosecution and gun possession charges was supposed to have largely closed out the lengthy investigation overseen by Delaware US Attorney David Weiss. However, the deal fell through after a judge raised doubts about its terms and appeared to have completely unraveled when prosecutors said in court documents Friday that the case was headed for trial.
Prosecutors revealed the impasse when Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Weiss as special prosecutor, a status that confers broad powers to investigate and report his findings.
___
Associated Press writers Farnoush Amiri and Seung Min Kim contributed to this report.
FOUNTAIN: Associated Press
