WASHINGTON DC – United States Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Friday that he will appoint David Weiss as special prosecutor in the investigation of Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, giving Weiss greater authority in his investigation.
Weiss, who was already overseeing the investigation, applied Tuesday to be granted the title of special prosecutor, Garland said.
“This appointment confirms my commitment to provide Weiss with all the resources he requests,” Garland said. “He also reaffirms that Mr. Weiss has the authority he needs to conduct a thorough investigation and continue to take whatever action he deems appropriate independently, based solely on the facts and the law,” added the attorney general.
Weiss was nominated by then-President Donald Trump in 2017 and began his tenure as U.S. attorney in Delaware in 2018. Following that appointment, Weiss had terms as an assistant or acting U.S. attorney, in addition to serving as first assistant U.S. attorney, according to his DOJ biography.
Weiss is one of the few Trump-era prosecutors to remain in office when President Joe Biden took office. He will continue in that position when he assumes the role of special counsel, Garland said.
Despite being nominated by Trump, Weiss has not been exempt from the former president’s attacks.
“If this special counsel is truly independent, even though he failed to file the proper charges after a four-year investigation and seems to be trying to move the case to a more pro-Democratic spot, he will be quick to conclude that Joe Biden, his troublesome son Hunter, and their enablers, including the media, who colluded with the 51 intelligence officials who knowingly misled the public about Hunter’s laptop, must face the required consequences,” a Trump spokesperson said in a statement.
After a hearing full of interruptions and changes of position, Hunter Biden decided to plead not guilty to the charges against him, seeing that they could not guarantee that he would not be tried in the future for tax crimes.
Weiss began his career in 1984 working for Justice Andrew D. Christie on the Delaware Supreme Court, according to his biography on the Department of Justice website. He has also spent time in the private sector at the firms Duane Morris and The Siegfried Group.
This is the third special counsel appointed by Garland, following Robert Hur in January 2023, who is investigating Biden’s handling of classified documents after he stepped down as vice president, and Jack Smith in November 2022, who is investigating Trump’s handling of classified documents and his role in the attempt to overturn the 2020 election.
“Weiss’s appointment reinforces for the American people the department’s commitment to independence and accountability on particularly sensitive issues,” Garland said during his remarks.
“I am confident that Mr. Weiss will carry out his responsibility impartially and urgently and in accordance with the highest traditions of this department,” Garland added.
This article was originally published in English for NBC News. To see more from NBC News, click here.
